More Pregnancy Stats

Ok, since I'm a fan of stats for keeping track of things, I'm gonna update my last numbers:

03/05/14 - 09 weeks, 6 days - BP 090/62 - 131 lb - 10cm
04/02/14 - 13 weeks, 6 days - BP 120/70 - 134 lb - 16cm
05/07/14 - 18 weeks, 6 days - BP 100/70 - 140 lb
06/04/14 - 22 weeks, 6 days - BP 104/72 - 146 lb
07/01/14 - 26 weeks, 6 days - BP 098/70 - 154 lb - belly measuring about 30 weeks
07/30/14 - 30 weeks, 6 days - BP 100/64 - 158 lb - belly measuring around 34/35 weeks

More details:
I have gained 27 pounds thus far. In between my two July appointments, I was on 21 days of Amoxicillin for Lymes Disease. Yes, that's what I said. Remind me to show you the bulls-eye rash on my thigh some time. Fun times. Speaking of fun times...the first day of August brought with it the return of the horrible acid reflux I had until about week 22. Luckily, Ryan is an excellent supplier of my yummy berry-flavored Tums whenever I need them. Which is quite often.

Hospital Provisions

Here's what Atlantic Health hospitals provide for labor, delivery, and postpartum, so moms-to-be know what they do and don't have to pack before baby's arrival. [I meant to do this right after we got home from the hospital - how is it that two months have gone by already??]

For Mama:
- nursing gowns with two vertical slits down the front (hospital property)
- slipper socks
- disposable underwear, pads, and ice packs
- ibuprofen, witch hazel pads, hemorroid cream and sprays, sitzbath, squirt bottle
- Tylenol (only upon request & if cleared by nurse)
- prenatal vitamins (1/day)
- 3 generous meals/day (also available for dad at $______ each, only upon request)
- bath towels (their size is not generous...request extra)(hospital property)
- shampoo and soap in shower
- soap at sinks (hospital property)
- bed linens (hospital property)

For Baby:
- shirts and receiving blankets (hospital property - bring your own for taking baby home)
- hats (pretty sure you can take one)
- pacifiers (pretty sure you can take one)
- diapers, wipes, and diaper cream

Did Not Use These But I Assume They Are Still Available:
- Lansinoh sample (upon request)
- formula and bottles, if necessary (hospital property)

They No Longer Give Out:
- formula samples
- Similac or Efamil diaper bags
(we received these at the births of our first three children, but alas no longer)

Anybody have anything to contribute that I've forgotten...? Please let me know and I will update the list. I'm also curious to know: What makes this list in other parts of the country - and what doesn't?

Elliot's CRAZY Birth Story

Here's Elliot's birth story, as written to share with our Bradley Birth class...

Saturday - 07/28/2012

Irregular contractions throughout the day – more like annoying Braxton-Hicks.

3:00PM – Leah takes an hour nap when the kids nap, just in case.

5:00PM – Contractions start to get a little more regular and more uncomfortable. Leah still in denial b/c contractions are still so short, and not every one is super hard.

7:30PM - Contractions begin to get stronger / more serious and 3-4 minutes apart. During contractions, Leah alternates b/t sitting on exercise ball watching the Olympics with the kids, doing laundry, walking around, or just relaxing. They start in the front like normal, but are radiating down to her bum and that’s where it really hurts the most. Starts worrying about back labor and another posterior baby. Ryan starts thinking THIS IS THE REAL THING – somehow, Leah is still in denial.

8:03PM – Leah e-mails sister-in-law Lori to complain about her annoying all-day “Braxton-Hicks”...

Leah takes shower and contractions really intensify. The pressure of the showerhead on her lower back is unbearable and sends her to her hands and knees in the shower. She gets out and sends the kids to bed so she can focus (previously, she had enjoyed them as a distraction). Starts to realize maybe this is really happening tonight. Also realizes that she needs Ryan to rub her lower back SUPER HARD during each contraction – this greatly helps alleviate the pressure/pain on her bum. He reminds her to relax during each contraction, and this helps.

9:01PM – Ryan calls his sister Lori in the next town over to tell her to be ready to come – “could be tonight.”

9:08PM - Called Tina's answering service (the midwife) and left message.
9:12PM - Tina returned call – Ryan let her know to be ready “just in case” – she listened to Leah through one contraction and knew she needed to be prepared to leave.

9:22PM - Leah texted her folks: "You guys are on alert.  Tonight might be the night.  Don't come yet, but get ready."

9:25PM - Leah's folks called in response to the text and were told just to be ready (they are an hour south, and would be the long-term babysitters). Would have told them to come earlier, but Leah really didn’t want company in the house so she could labor in private – she was starting to really need to “noise” thru contractions. Ryan is mentioning that perhaps going to the hospital now would be good, but Leah is super paranoid about getting there too soon like last time.

9:29PM – A little blood came out during a contraction – Leah told Ryan she was starting to “unplug.” Things really starting to happen fast – the contractions were on top of each other, and all Ryan got a chance to write down in his notes was “Blood”...

9:31PM – Ryan called Leah's folks to come. Leah told him if they get here and I’m still in labor, they have to wait in the car in the driveway!

9:34PM – While Leah was leaning over exercise ball during a contraction, her water broke with the Hollywood-style POP-GUSH! (Very surprising – the last 3 labors, her water has always been broken by Tina to try to speed up a stalled late 1st-stage.) Ryan called his sister back and said, “You need to COME NOW! We have to go!”

Leah’s first two thoughts: 1.) OH NO this means now I can’t labor in the tub!, and 2.) I have to get outside in the rain immediately so I don’t make more of a mess on the carpet!  So she runs outside to the front porch in the rain. The very next contraction, she realizes she feels the urge to push.

OH CRAP.

Thru the door, Leah hears her 5-yr-old daughter Lily upstairs crying. Leah opens the the front door – Lily sobs, “I didn’t get to say goodbye!” and comes down to hug Mama. Mama starts to have a contraction, and encourages Lily, “Everything is OK, just please rub my back!” Lily does her best to console her mom despite all her Mama’s noise, and is SUPER SWEET in her effort. After the contraction is over, Leah encourages her that she did great, tells her the baby is going to come out soon, and tells her to go back to bed so she can meet him tomorrow. Lily is happy to have helped and said goodbye, and runs back to bed.

Meanwhile, inside...

9:36PM – Ryan called Tina's answering service and left message.
9:41PM – Tina called back and Ryan told her, “Leah’s water broke! We’re going to hospital.” He frantically tries to finish gathering everything that needs to get put in the car from Leah's "last minute" list.

9:46PM – Could no longer wait for Ryan’s sister. Leah is on the front porch in the rain on her hands and knees wanting to push. When Ryan realizes what’s happening, he tells her, “OK, let’s go back inside and get in the tub and you can push!” But to Leah, the thought of going all the way back upstairs and climbing into the tub seems harder than driving to the hospital. Plus, in her head, that is not the plan – and she is somehow completely unable to deviate from THE PLAN.

9:47PM – Ryan calls a college-aged neighbor named Zoe and tells her to COME NOW! Waits all of 10 seconds, can’t wait any longer, then starts RUNNING next door to another neighbor’s house to get her IMMEDIATELY – then sees his sister’s headlights down the road! Ryan calls Zoe as he runs back home and tells her to forget it.

9:48PM – Ryan helps Leah into car (where she won’t go until after she’s assured there’s a garbage bag under the towel on the seat – priorities!), and they speed off before Lori is even out of her car. Leah has 2-3 contractions on the short ride to the hospital, and is working VERY HARD to not push through them – noising LOUDLY. Ryan reminds her to relax (probably b/c she is squeezing him so hard) and this helps. We will not document here the speeds travelled en-route...

9:55PM - Arrive at hospital. The minute the car stops, Leah gets out onto her hands and knees in the wet parking lot for another contraction. Guard with wheelchair is unsure what to do – Ryan rubs Leah’s back and assures the guard it’s OK – she’s just in labor. Now, Ryan has suddenly switched from frantic to calm and IN CONTROL. After contraction, Leah is persuaded to get into wheelchair (after she initially refuses, the guard says, “At least to the front door so you don’t slip in the rain!”). But she has absolutely no desire to sit, so she climbs onto it, rides it backwards on her knees, hanging onto the pole and over the back of the squishy black seat.

9:58PM – Official time the hospital marks us as having arrived. Ryan wheeled Leah inside (who now does not want to get off the wheelchair), and a second guard runs ahead and opens doors to labor/delivery area. Ryan yells, “We need a room!” and nurse at desk asks if it it’s Leah (Tina had called ahead). Other nurses direct us to room and tell Leah to get off the wheelchair and onto the bed. Leah opens her eyes for the first time and realizes she is no longer in the rain, but in a delivery room with four or five people rushing into the room behind her.

She climbs out of chair and says, “No, I don’t want to get on the bed!” because, again, the idea of doing anything on her back or bum is out of the question. She tries to get onto her hands and knees on the floor, but is told she really must get on the bed, so she climbs up and she hangs her upper body over the top of the raised bed and pillows with her knees on the flat part of the bed. She’s still not sure they’ll let her stay that way, but it’s the only way she can imagine staying.

The hospital doctor (Dr. Grady?) asks if she can check Leah, and Leah yells, “NO!” The idea of someone’s fingers doing an internal is unimaginable. Leah bears down during a contraction, but is still not 100% pushing because she feels the need to wait for Tina to make sure no one tries to intervene or stop her from laboring in this position. After contraction, hospital doctor sticks her fingers in there anyway and says, “Here’s the head – right there – look, Dad!” Ryan takes a peek and confirms he sees hair and head! Leah absolutely can’t believe the head is right there. It’s always taken SO MUCH WORK to get this far in the past. One more pushing contraction that Leah did not fight got the head to show a little more, but then it slipped back in a little. (Two steps forward, one step back!)

Leah heard Tina arrive and then decided it was “go time” – no more holding back! With the next push, the baby’s head was out to just below the nose, then the contraction stopped. Tina and the hospital doctor tried to pull the baby's head down and everyone kept telling Leah to keep pushing, because the baby began to turn blue (tho they did not tell her this, of course). They somehow maneuvered him out to below his chin and removed the umbilical cord from around his neck, and everyone was still telling Leah to keep pushing. It was very hard without a pushing contraction because she couldn’t FEEL HOW TO push – but she knew from experience what must be happening with the cord and was trying very hard.

10:10PM – With the next push, the baby's shoulders and the rest of his body came out! Tina caught the baby and he started crying immediately – the quickest we’ve heard one of our baby’s cry – such a relief! Leah was in shock and couldn’t believe it was over already. It was very unreal – and she couldn’t see anything because she was facing the wall! The umbilical cord was clamped and Ryan cut the cord.

The baby was taken to the other side of the room with his daddy to be quickly weighed and measured. Leah got turned over and realized she hadn’t even seen her baby yet! Ryan brought him back and he looked JUST like one of our babies – only with the nicest little round head – no wonder he just popped right out!

10:17PM - Ryan texted Leah's dad "8lbs 13oz, all ok" and he texted back that they had just barely left the house! =)

(Abbreviated timeline compiled the day after Elliot was born, thanks to the call history on our phones / texts and in our e-mails. Official hospital arrival time and baby's birth time supplied by Labor & Delivery.)

Gestational Diabetes

At 31 weeks, I was diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes. No, I did not have this with any previous pregnancies. At 32 weeks, I officially met with the hospital's Diabetes Center and started my new diet. Now at almost 38 weeks, I've decided to start a list of all the things I CAN'T WAIT TO EAT once this baby comes out and I am officially un-diagnosed:

• Belgian waffles with lots of fake syrup
• Wendy's chocolate frosty
• Big Italian sub with BOTH of the buns on it
• Pop Tarts - strawberry frosted with sprinkles
• More Belgian waffles, this time with strawberries and more fake syrup
• Lots of FRUIT (I never thought I'd say this!) - strawberries, peaches, any kind of berry or melon, maybe even a banana
• Chocolate-covered fruit (would be great from Edible Arrangements)
• Loooots of milk with REAL chocolate syrup, not the sugar-free Splenda kind
• A chocolate milkshake (seemed fitting that would be next)
• NO MORE JELLO 
• Ava's Jersey Creme Pie cupcake or a big Boston Creme donut
• Ginger ale
• Pizza
• Chicken pasta carbonara w/peas and prosciutto
• A corn dog and pierogies w/lots of sour cream from Stewart's
• Pad Kee Mao
• A huge Cinnabon with lots of icing
• Cinnamon rolls from my bread machine
• Anything from my bread machine
• Homemade banana bread (Jen Palumbo's recipe)
• McDonalds Frappe Mocha 
• Starbucks Cafe Mocha
• ANYTHING I WANT

Not saying I'm going over-indulge every single moment, but it helps to have goals, right? ;)

I have a diabetes testing kit and have had to test four times a day since week 32...so, what's that, about almost 200 times now? So far, I've been able to manage my numbers very well with just diet and exercise (who are we kidding? just diet...it's too hot outside to exercise), which has helped me avoid the need for Glyburide or insulin. Pray that continues the next couple of weeks!

After the first super-stressful few weeks where I just had absolutely no idea what to eat, I've settled into a good routine, and meal-time isn't so overwhelming or confusing. I have a good idea of how much I can have of which carbs, and am always very careful not to over-do it. It's amazing how self-controlled I can be when I have to report my numbers every week!

The question I get most often is, What in the world does this mean for you or the baby? The biggest effect this has on the baby is that he is getting too much sugar, since my placenta is not able to filter it properly and passes too much of it on to the baby. This often results in larger babies (haha - let's not even get into the irony here). Once the baby has been born, I do not have to check my blood sugar anymore, but the baby will have to be checked ever few hours after birth to make sure he is handling his suddenly sugar-free environment and not going into sugar shock or having seizures because of the sudden loss of so much sugar.

At least that's how I understand it.

Had I not been able to manage my numbers with diet and exercise, and had been put on medication, Tina (my midwife) would have had to induce me at 39 weeks because the need for medication is a sign that the placenta is really not working and it's too dangerous for baby to stay in there. As it is, even with my good numbers, I have to in twice a week for non-stress tests (this started at 36 weeks) just to make sure the placenta is indeed still doing an acceptable job.

So far, so good!

Samanatha's Birth Story - Two Years Later

Seeing as baby #4 is due in t-minus 2 1/2 weeks (hi, little buddy! Looking forward to meeting you soon!), what better time to document the birth of baby #3 just over two years ago? Yikes, I'm a little behind.

Three days past my due date, I woke up in the middle of the night wondering if perhaps my water had broken. I noticed some uncomfortable contractions and thought I guess I could be in labor, but mostly doubted it because after an awful back labor with baby #1, I have this habit of discounting anything that doesn't have me doubled over in pain for a day and a half. I slept off and on for the rest of the night.

In the morning, the contractions were a little stronger but still nothing to write home about - like Braxton Hicks getting a little more uncomfortable and perhaps a little closer together if I had actually stopped to notice. Before Ryan left for work, I mumbled something about how he should keep his phone close because this could be the day. But I was half asleep so I'm only half sure that's what I actually said.

After I got up and got the kids breakfast, I called my midwife, Tina, since I still wasn't sure my water had broken (it never had before). She wanted me to come to the office as soon as I could for a quick look-see, and I was all, "Um, yeah, how's THAT gonna happen?" as I looked at the two tiny faces seated beside me.

*Tangent. I'm having trouble picturing my skinny, tall, rambunctious 4-yr-old Jacob as this tiny, little speech-delayed CHUBBY 2-yr-old, sitting there at the table idolizing his big 3 1/2-yr-old sister...*

But Tina insisted - apparently when you're overdue and you think your water might have broken and your contractions are getting stronger, other people start to think you might actually be in labor, even if you don't yourself - so I called my neighbor to come stay with the kids for "just a little while" so I could go get checked out.

One pH test later and Tina informed me that no, my water had not broken (oops), but after an internal exam and one glance at my contractions (the "no, wait, stop talking for a second so I can concentrate through this" kind), she happily announced that I was 5cm dilated and indeed in labor.

Um, come again?

It's interesting being told you're halfway through something that you didn't even realize you'd started. Starting a labor in denial is DEFINITELY the way to go...

She told me she didn't want me driving myself home and having this baby on the side of the road - because apparently there's this pre-conceived notion that 3rd babies just FALL OUT (*cough cough LORI cough cough*) - and that I needed to walk myself across the street to the hospital and check myself in.

Um, come again? I'm just here for a check-up!

So even though my brain and my body are telling me it's too early, I take her advice and walk across the street. I call everyone I can think of on the way to tell them the exciting news. Ryan, to tell him to wrap it up and get home because apparently, the baby's coming? Maybe? Ryan's parents, Lori and Angela, because I knew they'd understand the excitement. Pam, because SOMEONE had to relieve my neighbor, who when she heard the term "possible labor," rushed over still in her pajamas for my "quick" doctor's visit. My parents, who would ultimately be staying with the kids while Ryan and I were at the hospital after the baby was born.

Long story short, I took my time getting there. I still wasn't really 100% sure I was in labor (see? DENIAL!), and this news had stalled any contractions and flooded me with adrenaline. When I finally got there, I walked myself through the front door and up to Labor & Delivery. I remember mumbling something to the guard outside the doors about, "My doctor told me to come because she thinks I'm in labor..." and he made the best surprised / you're crazy face ever. The nurses were so relieved to see me because they were convinced I must have had the baby on the walk over it took me so long. They immediately checked me into my [beautiful, huge, corner] room.

It didn't take long for Ryan to get there, and when he did, I sent him to the cafeteria to get us both lunch, because I was starving and there's nothing like a husband who just left work because something was supposed to be happening sitting around just waiting for something to happen. Tina arrived and I felt this sudden pressure to perform...all I could think about was all the appointments she'd have to cancel all day because of me and my supposed labor.

So Tina and I walked around. And around. And around. I gradually started believing her that I was in labor ("Hang on, let me lean against this wall for a second...."), and did a good job relaxing through the contractions as we walked. I wasn't crazy about being at the hospital so early in my labor - feeling this pressure to perform - and should have listened to my instincts to just drive myself home from Tina's office and come back when this thing was really in full swing, like with my last two labors. I knew my body by then and knew that MY babies don't just fall out on their own. They take a lot of work to get out - work that I wasn't near doing at 5cm in Tina's office.

But it was too late. Ryan and I ate our big lunch, and I happily smiled for the camera, sandwich in hand ("See, world? The joy of having a midwife and being allowed to EAT while in labor when you're hungry and about to run a marathon!").

The details start to get a little foggy after that...because, you know, I was a little busy giving birth. Contractions were really starting to get harder, but at one point, after a couple hours, Tina started feeling that my labor was not progressing as it should and she was worried that my [tired, used-up] uterus wasn't up for the performance. She at some point broke my water, and let me tell you YUCK I did not enjoy walking around LEAKING...so dighusting. But that didn't do the trick, as far as she was concerned, so she started me on Pitocin.

Greeeeeaaaaat. I was on Pit for the end of my (previously-mentioned, AWFUL, 31 1/2hr posterior) labor with Lily, so I wasn't as afraid of it as a regular first-time mom might have been, and I knew it would do its job of getting things moving, but I was really hoping to avoid interventions. She got the Pit going and some hard contractions really started coming. Yay...it's working...

Transition hit soon after. Sweating, cold (or was it hot?), talking about how I could go no farther, and Ryan please turn OFF that camera because who wants to remember THIS?! After one particularly BAD contraction, where I remember laying on my side and moaning, I opened my eyes and saw all this STUFF set out on a table at the foot of my bed. "How did all that get there? And WHEN?"

Tina laughed and asked me, hadn't I noticed I was making a bearing-down noise during that last contraction? I thought about it. Oh yes, I suppose it HAD felt better to bear down through that.

I guess she was ready to catch a baby!

She checked me internally again and pronounced me 10cm with a little lip but nothing I couldn't push through. So the next contraction came and naturally everyone expected me to start pushing.

I had other ideas.

For some reason, I had NO urge to push. Or maybe I had the urge but I would rather fight it because I was being lazy and wasn't this baby just supposed to fall out by itself? I seemed to remember hearing that just a few hours before...

We went through a few contractions like that. It could have been 5 or 20, I have no idea. Maybe one day we'll go back and watch the video, but two years later and we've still NEVER SEEN IT. Somehow it just seems too...real? So I vividly remember people telling me to PUUUUSH and me yelling back NOOOOO I don't WAAAANT to push, stop saying PUUUUUSH!!! And Tina made a back-handed comment like, "Well, I guess we'll just wait here because she must not be ready for this baby to come out yet," or something like that.

And she totally knew how to handle me because when a passive-aggressive person is faced with a passive-aggressive comment like that, they're all OH NO YOU DIDN'T!!! and suddenly I had the urge to push. Who knew?

The whole stage 2 of this labor took an hour start to finish, just as Jacob's had, so it's not like one push and out came this gigantic baby. It was still a lot of hard work. A lot of typical 2 steps forward, 1 step back. Finally, the head was in position and when I can reach down and FEEL it, I am HUGELY motivated (but no stop asking if I'd like a mirror put down there to help motivate me because that just grosses me out and feeling what's happening is motivation enough for me!).

I remember at one point Ryan announcing that the baby's hair looked red, and I totally didn't believe him. But even comments like that are HUGELY motivating because I really wanted to see for myself so I could point out how he was wrong ;)

Have I ever mentioned that it's not easy pushing out a 10lb baby? With a head in the 80th percentile for 10lbs? So yes, now we know for certain. My babies do not just fall out. If anyone ever suggests that again, I am going to laugh so hard the baby might just fall out. Or not.

I know lots of women fear the "ring of fire," but I remember being SO HAPPY to be that far along - knowing that with just a couple more pushes, this baby would be out and in my arms and the whole labor would be over. (We all know that pesky stage 3 doesn't really count.) So with just a few more pushes, our beautiful CHUBBY little girl came sliding out.

They put this big baby (toddler?) on my belly and the smell and feel of my previous babies came flooding back to me. I don't think that's something you ever really forget - the SMELL of a newborn who just came out of you, so fresh she's still attached to you, wriggling and whimpering, and squinting and not at all sure what just happened.

Immediately, everyone started guessing her weight, just like they had with Jacob. I wanted to nurse her and keep her with me for a good while before they whisked her away to be cleaned and weighed and checked, but my curiosity got the best of me, and I really wanted to know how big she was, too. I don't think anyone could quite believe she was 10lb 1oz. I wonder how big she would have been had I nursed first??

I tore the same as the previous two times, and Tina gave me a local and stitched me up after delivering the placenta. I remember the nurses telling me that I had to go to the bathroom before I could leave the room, so I sat up and swung my legs over the bed, and they just about fell over because my hospital has a 90% epidural rate (insanity!) and what in the world is that mother doing with control of her own legs???

After getting me set up in my mother-baby postpartum room, Tina had me still hooked up to the Pitocin, which was really irritating because it was still giving me uncomfortable contractions at a time when I was feeling like I deserved to be done having them. She was worried that my uterus my not go back down in size properly post-delivery, since it hadn't been contracting "properly" previous to the delivery.

Ryan's family were Samantha's first visitors, but I remember it taking a really long time for the nurses to actually bring her into the room. Visiting hours were ending, and they still hadn't seen their new grand-daughter. After several promptings from polite Ryan, they finally brought her in and our newest little bundle was passed around amongst the family.

The next day, my parents came with the kids so they could meet their new little sister. Lily was somewhat interested and spent a good amount of time petting her on her soft little head. Jacob had NO desire to be there and it was difficult getting any pictures of him with the baby. Lily was eventually distracted by potato chips on my food tray and noises in the hallway, so we all went for a little walk to the waiting area and the kids got to see their new sister at their own pace.

I guess two years later, I still remember a lot of the details. Here's hoping that now that it's all written down and out of my head, I've made room for a whole new set of memories with baby #4! You hear that, baby? We're ready for you! Whenever you'd like to arrive is fine with me =)


TRACKBACK:
Lily Ann (December 19, 2006)
Jacob Ryan (May 18, 2008)

Ultrasound Pics of Baby #4

(Or rather, iPhone photos of the ultrasound pics....)



Side view - hello, baby!

Lily came with us - the first time we've brought a kid along for the grand reveal. At first, the plan was to bring the whole gang with us, Duggar-style, but we lack all those teenagers for crowd control (should have had those first!), and realized the younger two would be far too restless to last that long in a dim room with nothing to look at but bones and Mama's jelly belly. When the lady doing the ultrasound realized this baby was going to be our fourth, she assumed Lily was our current YOUNGEST and the other two were in school.

It's always fun watching people's faces when you let them know your 5-yr-old is the OLDEST of [almost] four. ;)



I always love the hand waving or gesturing pictures. I remember one of the kids gave us a thumbs-up once (no, I can't remember which one)(yes, I'm THAT MOM who can't remember who did what...). I know it's silly, but I always picture them in my belly, trying to communicate with me through their friendly waves, trying to let me know, hey mom RELAX, it's all good in here.



This one's kind of blurry, but in the middle there is the bottom of the foot. (Toes on left, heel on right.)



Another calming wave.



I specifically asked the Ultrasound chick for this printout. We've had - how do I put this gently...? - babies with big heads. Makes the thought of labor so much more exciting, no? For instance, Samantha's was in the 84th percentile at her 20-week ultrasound. Not too awful if you have a 6 or 7 lb baby. But a head in the 84th percentile on a baby who is 10lb is something completely different........................ Now that I've got you thinking.

So what have we here...?
HC = Head Circumference: 39%

BOO YA! That's what I'm sayin'!

Ryan took to work the 3D pic of the baby shyly hiding behind its fist...I will add that when I can.

We also have a gender photo, but posting it feels a little obscene somehow. I won't post pics of my kids in the tub, so I'm surely not about to post THAT AREA (stop laughing, Angela) in all it's glory.

But I'll leave you with this celebratory picture of Lily and I with our free "Happy First Day of Spring" Italian Ice from Rita's - just so happened to be the same day as our ultrasound. We snuck over for some special 1-on-1 time before picking up the other kids...she saved some of her mint chocolate chip for her daddy!



(I shared mine with #4...)

PS Haha!!! I'm such a hypocrite! I went looking for Samantha's 20-week ultrasound post, and the very first picture there is her gender picture! Oh my goodness...so funny.

It's About That Time Again

It's been far too long since we've made a good announcement here, so how about we let Samantha have a go at it...?



Introducing the new H4, scheduled to roll off the line August, 2012. Comes fully equipped with all the bells and whistles. ;)

How We Pass the Time

Two days late...and counting.

Big Sister In Training

Since it seems we won't have pictures of Lily holding an actual baby sister on my due date, here are some pictures of her practicing with Katelyn Jane:







Thanks, Pam, for not batting an eye when I said to Lily, "Here, let's come let you practice holding a REAL baby!"

Belly Shots, Part 2

Here's the final belly shot I think I'll be able to get before the baby comes (sorry, everyone else who's pregnant - you just live too far away!).

Lori and me - taken today, when she's 14 weeks pregnant (due early November) and I'm due in ONE DAY:



Click here for Belly Shots, Part 1

How I'm Feeling: 1 Week Out

NOTE: This post was originally written last week, but for some reason, I never posted it.

Tomorrow, I will officially be due in one week. That's just crazy talk.

A few weeks ago, I would have told you I feel soooo ready (physically) to have this baby, and wouldn't have been surprised had it happened any time. But then spring weather came long. And we started playing outside. And I started transplanting things and digging and DOING things, and wouldn't you know I got lots of energy I haven't had in months and months?

And now I don't feel so ready. Mentally, yes - let's get this show on the road! But physically? I have absolutely no signs of this baby coming any time soon. And after two babies, I pretty much know my physical signs.

So much for expecting to be late but hoping to be early...

One thing worth mentioning:
Last night, I had this awful pain on my left side, just above my hips, like I've never felt before. I couldn't decide if it felt better to rub it or walk around or curl up on the couch and complain...loudly. The pain came and went for a half an hour to an hour in varying degrees, but never completely went away before bed. Thankfully, it was gone when I woke up this morning. I Googled the pain, but really only turned up "round ligament" pain or ovarian cyst-related pain, but this didn't fit either of those categories, and was more a pinched nerve / sudden intense cramp type pain. Whatever it was, I'm just glad it's gone and hope it never returns!

Belly Shots, Part 1

I thought it'd be fun to post belly shots of me with all my friends who are also preggers - feels like there's a lot! So enjoy the show!

Pam and me - taken October 25th, 5 days before Katelyn came out and when I was NOT YET GIGANTIC (I can't remember back that far).



Juliet and me - taken this past Friday, when she was 35 1/2 weeks (she's due May 26th) and I was exactly 38 weeks (due May 7th). Not a big fan of how wide my face and my body look in this picture...I'd like to blame it on the horizontal stripes, but there aren't any on my face ;)



Me and Emily - taken this past Saturday at her shower, when she was 36 weeks (she's due May 20) and I was 38 weeks.



Datnee and me - taken yesterday, when she was 33 weeks (she's due June 15th) and I was due in just over a week.



All I need now is a pic of me with my friend Erin, who is due a week and a half after me; my cousin Heidi, who is due in (I believe) September; my friend Jen, who is due November 6th; and my sister-in-law Lori, who is also due early November.

Travel to the future and take a look at Belly Shots, Part 2

How I'm Feeling: 35 Weeks

I can't believe that two days from now, I'll be due with this baby in just four weeks. FOUR WEEKS. That's ridiculous.

Make sure you pronounce that like my Opa: ree-dik-uh-luss.

Today's 35-week appointment was with Dr. Garfinkel, the practice's OB, since Tina (my midwife) is on vacation. I've had two previous experiences with him. The first was when he circumcised Jacob and he was a little nervous to let me watch - like he didn't think I'd be able to handle it, and then he'd have two babies on his hands (he didn't). The second time was...

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I'm sorry, I have to tangent here. Jacob is standing next to me right now, inspecting my belly, shouting, "Beh-beh! Beh-beh!" He has lifted my shirt so he can rub his hands on the "baby," and now he just put his head against it, like he's giving her a hug. What a sweetheart!

OK, tangent over.
>>

The second time was with my last miscarriage. But this was my first regular OB visit with him. He seemed a little rushed and unfocused at first, but then when I heard he was about to head to the hospital to deliver a baby, I was grateful he took the time to see me at all before leaving. Because a BABY! being BORN! So much more exciting.

We heard the baby's heartbeat, and he said the baby was measuring a little bigger than normal. Tina has told me my BELLY was bigger than normal, common for a third pregnancy, but it was nice to have someone actually confirm that, yes, the big BABY is also contributing. He said that normally babies at this stage are about 5 pounds, and mine might be about 7 pounds. He said I'm probably in for another 8 or 9 pounder.

Greeeeeeaaaaaat.
At least he didn't say 10 or 11...though I bet he was thinking it. ;)

My next appointment is next week. Wow, can't believe I'm starting on the weekly visits already!

35 Weeks (Now) vs 40 Weeks (Then)

So I thought it would be fun to do a little belly comparison. Here's Ryan and me at 35 1/2 weeks on Easter this past Sunday:



And here we are on my due date at exactly 40 weeks almost two years ago:



Pretty similar belly, eh?

How I'm Feeling: Week 33

Or..."When Things Fall Into Place"

Had my latest OB appt this morning, and it turns out I'm 33.5 weeks, not 32.5 weeks like I thought. Seems the haze and activity of the last two weeks clouded my brain and made me lose count in there. Oops.

Man, that means I'm going to be 34 weeks Friday. That's just nuts. SO much closer to 40 than 32...I'm going to have to start wrapping my brain around this whole baby situation. Yes, I know I'm a little slow. I've definitely been used to the "baby in my belly" concept for quite some time now, but my brain has not quite gotten to the "baby is going to come out...and live here. And poop here. And keep Mama up at night again. And take up lots of space with lots of STUFF" concept yet.

The good news is the baby finally got into position - her head is down where it should be and I'm no longer breech. Phew, at least that's taken care of. (Now stay there, baby!) Tina had some trouble feeling the head this time, so we did a quick topical ultrasound and BOOM! There's the baby! All of a sudden, her image jumped on screen - her little hands cuddling in front of her face, legs kicking away, head down in my pelvis where we hoped it would be. Just like I said after our level II ultrasound at 20 weeks (our last view), seeing the image of your baby up on screen never, ever gets old.



Other stats? I've gained 25 lbs thus far. (24 lbs as of four weeks ago, 26 lbs two weeks ago, and 25 lbs today.) This may sound super for someone who's nearing the end of her pregnancy, but I know I have a history of gaining a lot very quickly at the end, so the longer I can stay lower, the better. I gained 40 lbs with Lily and 33 lbs with Jacob. (I was so happy to have only gained 30 lbs by his due date, but then packed on another 3 lbs in the 8 extra days waiting for him to come out - little stinker.)

So yeah, I was hoping to keep it under or around 30 again this time. We'll see how close I get.

We also talked about this head/chest cold that I've had FOREVER. She said since a pregnant woman's sinuses are so full to begin with (something I've known but never really felt with any of my pregnancies), when you add a head cold or viral sinus infection on top of that, everything is so built up in there that it can turn bacterial and I may actually need antibiotics to get rid of it. Yuck. So in typical Leah fashion, I'm going to do nothing but wait it out a little longer and see what happens. If it's not resolved or at least much better before my next appointment two weeks from now, I may start taking something just so when she asks me about it, I can at least say I've started doing SOMEthing. Hopefully, it won't come to that.

Will scan today's ultrasound pic and post it when I get the chance. For now, that's all the new baby news!

Note: Haha! Didn't scan and put the ultrasound picture in until February 10, 2011 - almost a whole year later! Guess with three kids in the house, "when I get the chance" is closer to NEVER.

A Pregnant Woman's Late-Night Snacks

Ritz crackers with American cheese, pickles, and kielbasa.



Vanilla ice cream with a scoop of honey-roasted peanut butter, a scoop of Nutella, and two chewy Chips Ahoy cookies.

Did I mention that time I had a peanut and butter sandwich for lunch...with lettuce, pickles, and cheese? Yeah, that was awesome.

Who Knew?

Apparently, when you take your kids with you to the midwife for your monthly pre-natal visits, there are lollipops involved. LOLLIPOPS. If they would have told me this sooner, I would have brought them EVERY MONTH.

What - pregnant Mamas don't want Tootsie Rolls?!

Tina was super excited to give Jacob his first ever lollipop. He was very excited to receive it.



She said giving a little kid his or her first lollipop is one of the highlights of her job, and that she loves how they always know exactly what to do with it without having to be told. I found it amazing that he didn't drop it once, considering how the majority of his food usually ends up on the floor every mealtime. Now we have proof that he CAN control it. Stinker.

I told Tina she could have the privilege of this milestone considering she delivered him and all. And there was that whole untangling the cord from around his neck business. She totally deserved this moment.

Lily picked out the lollipops for her and Jacob (pretty funny that they were pink and blue - guess people start indoctrinating them with color bias pretty young):



Of course, I picked out my own - sorry, little girl, Mama's gotta have her chocolate!

As we left Tina's office, Lily lagged behind in the hall and eventually said, "Oh, something's sticking to my teeth..."

Mmmm the core of Tootsie Roll goodness.

Hers was gone long before we hit the parking lot.



Can I tell you how excited I was to take Mr. Sticky Face/hands/shirt/pants into the car? Good thing we had wipes! (Here he is, saying, "Cheese!" - sounds more like "eeesh".)

Lily Loves Her Some Baby

Sweet Lily with her baby sister.



(I figure this qualifies as a belly shot, for those of you who were asking...yep, another three months to go.)

Did I Call It or What?

Remember when I posted this video about pregnant bellies looking much larger than they really are? Well, that's TOTALLY ME now. People are asking, "Are you sure you're not having twins?" (Yes) or "Is there any chance you're really due a couple months sooner than you thought?" (No)

Though it would be nice to deliver a week or two early so our new little girl could have her own birthday month (April), and not have to share with her brother (May).

And so, you know, I wouldn't have a 10-pound baby...

The Family Camel

Today, Lily didn't use the potty until 2:30 p.m.

Not once.

She is the complete opposite of a pregnant woman behind on her Kegels.