Category Archives: Baby #1

A Wee Baby Update

Posted in Baby #1, Pregnancy Update by

Just thought I’d give ya’ll a quick update as to where I’m at in this freakin’ pregnancy…

Yesterday around 4 p.m. I had a visit with my doctor since it was my official due date. He wanted to just see how I was doing since he was going out of town today and won’t be back until Wednesday evening. Since he didn’t do an internal exam at my appointment on Friday like he said he was going to, he “had a peek” yesterday.

The “peek” discovered that I was about 2cm dilated, so he decided to help speed up the proceed by doing a “sweep”. For those who are not aware, the “sweep” hurt like a muther-trucker. Think of a PAP test x 1,000,000 in discomfort. Yeah. Ouch.

Anyway, after that he figured I could go into labour anytime after that. Excitement and nervousness instantly overcame me. I called Kyle as soon as I walked out of the office and told him to call work and tell them he’s not coming in because it could very well be baby time!

So, around 5 p.m. I started getting intense lower back pain but didn’t really think to time how often I was having said pain. We walked down to my mom’s since that was the plan anyway (my brother’s visiting during his mid-semester break), and the pain kept coming. My mom was pretty sure I was having contractions since she also had bad back labour when she had me. I like to be in denial, so I didn’t believe her at first, but when it got to the point where I couldn’t function, I believed her.

Kyle and I headed for home around 7:30 and he got the truck pre-packed with my hospital bag and the car seat just to be prepared (He’s a gamer like that and I love it). Around 9 p.m. I started timing things and the contractions were lasting about 30 seconds and were about 5 minutes apart. We headed to the hospital around 9:40 and got to Labour & Delivery at 10 p.m. Kyle called my mom and she got there around 10:30. A nurse came to see me around 11 p.m. and hooked me up to a monitor to check my contractions. They were still on course and timed right, so she checked my cervix and figured I was about 4cm dilated. I was admitted and they put me in a birthing room.

I was managing the pain fairly well and they didn’t have to hook me up with and medication. I walked around the maternity ward in an attempt to speed things up, but my poor chubby feet could only handle so much at a time. That and listening to other women in hard labour was horrifying. I actually heard a baby being born! Crazy …

Anyway, after being up almost all night, Kyle and I finally decided to try and rest the best we could in the uncomfortable hospital “furniture” – me on the awful bed and him in a nasty, old recliner. My mom napped almost all night and Kyle stayed up with me helping me through my contractions, so we were both exhausted. My nurse came in at one point around 6 a.m. and checked to see how much I had dilated and she figured I was at about 5-6cm. Yay! She was also surprised at how well I was handling the pain. Obviously I have super-human strengths.

She said that she’d get ahold of my doctor and so he could check on me, so Kyle went home to check on our dogs before the doc arrived. My doctor showed up while Kyle was still at home, checked my cervix and basically said, “No, no, no, you’re still only at 4cm, but your cervix has changed since I seen you yesterday afternoon. Go home, get some rest, have a shower, get walking around, and let’s hope that helps!” Umm – WHAT?!? At least he expressed some sympathy for me.

Needless to say, I was severely disappointed. My mom drove me home – Kyle was on his way back down but thank God for hands-free mobile devices. He hadn’t made it very far down the hill so he just turned around.

So, at 7:30 a.m. this morning I was home, exhausted from no sleep, and depressed. Kyle made me some breakfast and we promptly showered and went to bed after that. I slept until around 1:30 when I couldn’t handle all the “checking in” texts and phone calls any longer.

Currently, my back is still killing me, but at least I’m at home where I can be comfortable. I’m really wanting this baby out of me, but if she can wait until my doctor is back in town tomorrow evening, that would be okay too. The doctor on call is apparently great, but I’d much prefer my doctor to see the whole thing through.

So that’s where I’m at. Now I’m going to go lay on the couch and hope something starts happening.

40 Weeks and The End

Posted in Baby #1, Pregnancy, Pregnancy Update by

It’s Friday, June 22 as I write this. I’m going to schedule this to go live Monday, June 25, my actual due date. It will be interesting to see if anything “happens” between now and when it goes up! In fact, I think I’ll put a “Number of times I’ve edited this post” count at the end of this post. I have/had a doctor’s appointment Friday afternoon and he’s suppose to “check things out” down below to see where I’m at.

40 weeks. I can’t believe I’ve made it this far. It’s amazing what my body can do to be able to grow a human. As uncomfortable as I feel, I’m pretty damn proud of myself. The end is finally here, or at least near.

Edited Friday, June 22 @ 3:47 p.m. to add: The doctor decided not to check my cervix and all that jazz, which was annoying. You know how much I psyched myself up for that? I go back to see him at 3:40 p.m. today. Then maybe – MAYBE – he’ll have a peek. Ugh. If not, then I go back on Thursday before he buggers off to work at a rural hospital ER for the weekend. Damn him for being such a nice guy to the failing rural health clinics.

How far along? 40 weeks

How big is baby?  She’s probably about the same as she was last week, if not, a little bigger.

Total weight gain/loss: I gained another pound or so, probably all in water retention judging by the size of my feet. Have I showed you my elephant feet? No? Well, I better then:

At least they’re pedicured!

Maternity Clothes? I’m making do with what I have, even though the summer heat is making me miserable.

Stretch marks? I like to call them my tiger stripes. They’re not too out of control, but they’re definitely there. It’s weird because I have quite a few on my right side but only one on my left.

Sleep: It’s still very hit or miss, but soon I’ll at least be able to be comfortable sleeping again. I miss sleeping on my stomach SO much!

Movement: Still quite a bit, although I feel a lot of downward pressure into my pelvis. I have no idea what’s going on.

Food cravings: Last week I craved poutine. I succeeded in satisfying that craving when Kyle and I went to Costco for groceries and we stopped at their cafeteria for lunch. Mmm … cheese curds!

What I miss: Normal-sized feet (still). I tried to put my flats on just to m0ve our truck out of the driveway and they barely fit. *sob*

What I am looking forward to: Getting this baby out of me. Kind of. The thought of labour terrifies me, but I just have to remember the HUGE reward at the end of it all.

Milestones: Nothing new – we’re just waiting now!

Photo:

Edit count: 1

39 Weeks and Waiting

Posted in Baby #1, Pregnancy, Pregnancy Update by

I’m now on maternity leave and just waiting around for something to happen.

It’s painful. I keep thinking that I “feel” something happening, that the baby could be coming, but then it stops and I wonder if it’s all in my head. Every cramp, twinge and bathroom trip leaves me suspicious. I am my own worst enemy.

I’m so ready for this all to be over. I’m not mentally prepared for the whole labour and delivery part, but I’ll cross that bridge when I get there. I’m waiting for that “burst” of energy that every past-pregnant woman has spoken of that happens before they went into labour, but so far, I’ve got nothing.

I’ve started trying the “get labour started” tricks – drinking raspberry tea, “bouncing” on an exercise ball, eating spicy food, etc., but so far (as of 5:30 Sunday evening), nothing. I told Kyle that he’s to take me down a bumpy back road while he’s on days off this week. I’m going to get this baby out one way or another.

Waiting, waiting, waiting … It’s the pits.

How far along? 39 weeks

How big is baby?  She weighs about 7.5lbs and is about 20.5″ long, according to BabyCentre.ca. I’m okay with that!

Total weight gain/loss: I’ve gained a couple more pounds, which I’m certain is all water weight judging by the size on my enormous feet and ankles.

Maternity Clothes? I’m definitely done shopping. Don’t be surprised if I wear clothes at all from now until the baby arrives. I’m not even joking.

Stretch marks? They’re there. Oh well. I’ll just deal with them later.

Sleep: I’m up all the time. I’ve been able to manage the “waking up sweating to death” bit, but getting more than 2 hours of sleep at a time is proving to be a challenge. The worst thing is that almost everytime I wake up, I wake Kyle up, which makes me feel horrible especially when he has to go to work in the morning. I really should just sleep in our spare bedroom, even though I’d have to deal with a potentially smelly Campbell.

Movement: Still lots, which makes me wonder whether or not Baby is ready to arrive. They (whoever “they” are) say the movement slows down when they’re “in position”, but my doctor said she’s head down. I don’t know. I’m completely lost.

Food cravings: Salt! Which is horrible because my feet are so swollen. And I’ve really been wanting fish & chips. Weird.

What I miss: Normal-sized feet.

What I am looking forward to: Baby arriving any day now, and a new chapter of our lives!

Milestones: The baby furniture is all in the room and ready to go! I feel SOOO much better now that it’s all there. Maybe that’s why I’m growing impatient.

Photo: No photo this week – Just know that I’m pretty much the same size, Baby hasn’t dropped, and I’m feeling like a whale.