Pregnancy at 31wks

I am feeling crazy and lazy. All in all, I really am doing great and the countdown says it all. Should our girl be better about schedules and timing then her mama, she should be here in 8wks and 6 days! My sciatica and pelvic pain are increasing, but I have plans to see the chiropractor (based on my midwife's recommendation) so hopefully that will help.

Exercising has almost stopped. It is hot. 107* and you want me to exercise? No. Wait, I mean, no thank you. I really am trying, but about 10min into our evening walk I feel swollen, sore and sticky. Not pleasant, but I know it's important to try and up-keep exercise for the sake of labor. I have also lost my mind. Nothing is coming out of my mouth the way I mean it. :) I occasionally make words up, or when I do something seemingly odd my explanations make no sense.

Example: Yesterday while laying in bed I heaved off by pushing into Adam's stomach. Needless to say, he didn't appreciate it. My response? "I'm sorry, I thought you were the mattress." The sad part is, I really did. I thought I had my hand on the bed, not my poor husband's tummy.

I am also super emotional. Today I cried because Adam asked if I'd like to get frozen yogurt. (Yes, you read that right.) Two days ago I cried because I feel like I'm always crying. (This had to do with my pelvic and back pain that night)

I am eating everything. I made a huge batch of cookies last week and Adam ate four.

......in related news this around the time of the first appointment I've had where I had ONLY gained 5lbs in three weeks instead of my usual 15lbs. God's sense of humor doesn't necessarily match my own.

Today I went ahead and bought a maternity swimsuit top. I had been jimmy-rigging an old "big Kaitlin" tankini I had kept, but obviously it didn't fit quite right and subsequently I'm embarrassed when wearing it. As far as maternity suits go, this one is actually pretty cute. I'm hoping to get some laps in the pool this week. No real excuse since it's free and right outside my front door.

This week a well-meaning new friend at church, about three years my junior, commented "WOW, you've gotten even bigger in just a week! How much longer before you pop?"

*sigh* Thank you? I couldn't really be upset, she's quite sweet and if she thought she was going to make me self-conscious (she did) she would never have said it.

How much longer do we have left? I feel like this post is one big whine, I really am enjoying most of pregnancy, and I know I'm lucky to have Adam here and most things going smoothly. Still, I can't help but want it to be October 2nd....

Makin' Room

Adam and I re-arranged our room yesterday to make things a little more comfortable since we now have the behemoth pack-n-play setup, rather then continuing to store it these last few months. It does make our room feel much cozier.

...But maybe that's because it takes up so much space!

Where's Baby?

Last night, I changed things up.

Instead of going for my usual insomnia, I went for crazy dreams and panic. Maybe it was only one dream, but in the morning light I feel like I had about five last night highlighting the grandiose lack of maternal instinct.

I kept losing my baby. No one took her, no one threatened her, I did not abuse her. Like a set of keys, I could never seem to remember where I had set her down. I spent the whole of each dream running through my house trying to find her, assure her safety, and move on with our day.

In the end she was always somewhere bizarre like; on the fridge, in an empty bathtub, by the mailbox, or in a taxicab. Yeesh. Let's hope this isn't some foresight into what my parenting skills will be like!

30/31wk Appt

Today was our "30wks and 4 days" appointment. Not surprising, since we had a hospital visit last week, all is well with our baby girl. I'm still measuring on target, and am pleased to announce that in the last three weeks I managed to gain only three pounds. YAY! (This should clue you in to just how much and how often I've been gaining...) Our girl's heartbeat was around 142, and she politely kicked the Doppler microphone while our midwife was trying to get readings.

More blood work to be done tomorrow, and I have the delightful task of completing a 24hr urine for them as well. For those of you who have not had the pleasure of doing one of these before, basically you carry an orange jug around for 24hrs to use when you go to the bathroom. It's delightful. All this is to monitor my kidney function and tomorrow's blood work is for my liver enzymes as well as to do a followup on my thyroid. (They've upped my medication, again.) Because of my colorful medical chart I am at greater risk for pre-eclampsia, so they want to make sure they have a baseline for me in case I begin to show signs of pre-eclampsia they'll know what's normal for me, and what lab results are something to worry about.

It's exciting knowing we've entered the "every two weeks" phase of our midwife appointments, and my next appointment with the perinatologist is on the 16th, but following that appointment I'll be going every week. While those appointments are to monitor baby's health (and mine), who wouldn't want to see their precious babe every week?!

Sitting, Waiting, Wishing

Today Adam had interview number, are you ready, FIVE with Staffmark. This was the first interview he's had with them that was incredibly informal. They met at a Starbucks, and chatted. This gentleman, head of business development at the Dallas offices, was interested in Adam's work experience, but also his being an Eagle Scout and his volunteering with the Red Cross after Katrina. (the first one out of all interviews for all companies to seem to even notice that information on his resume)

At the end of their hour and a half together, it was announced that he planned on recommending Adam for the position and to expect to hear something within the next three days! I am trying so hard not to count our chickens, but it's difficult not to be excited, proud and hopeful! This position is in Las Colinas, so the offices are 20min from our home, and he would be able to work from 7am-4am if he wanted, which would help beat traffic and give him time home with me and oo1 in the evenings. Not to mention the salary increase, good vacation time and better benefits.

Now we're sitting, waiting, wishing....

Bradley Method Class--Wk1/2

As I write this, a certain little girl is kicking me just below my right rib cage, practicing her dégages. Our strong girl may make a beautiful ballerina someday, especially with all this in-utero practice.

(Let's just hope she got her daddy's arches)

Today was our first time to attend our Bradley Method class. Really, the class started last week but I've been struggling with insomnia and hadn't gotten to sleep until almost 6am that morning. Getting up at 8:30am was just not happening. This morning though, we had no excuse. I was incredibly nervous and almost asked not to go. For some reason new groups tend to make me anxious and I wondered "will we even want to be there?!" The answer, we both discovered, was "YES!!" I can tell I'm going to get a lot out of the class to help prepare me for the natural birth I'm hoping to achieve, and Adam was remarking how he felt like it really gave him a specific role and a way to participate. The class will take place over the next few weeks until---October 1st. :) Yes, a day before our "guess date". Though, if I'm anything like the women in my family, or the rest of the un-induced ladies out there, I'll be an extra 1-2wks.

Today we covered the exercises we'll continue and increase over the next few months. Exercises like squats, the butterfly, tailor sitting, and kegels.

Tailor Sitting

• Sit on the floor with feet crossed near hips. Keep the back tall and lean gently forward.
• Use as a replacement for chair-sitting whenever possible.
  

Squatting

• Place feet hip-width apart, keep knees over the toes and gently lower to a deep flat-footed squat. Hold on to a counter top or a partner for balance if necessary. Return to standing by coming up "tail first" and roll the spine up.
• Use squatting in place of bending over.

Pelvic Rocking

• On hands and knees, forming a box with hands directly under shoulders and knees directly under hips, begin with your back in a neutral, level position. Gently relax the lower back, keeping your upper back still. As you return the spine to neutral, pull in your abdominal muscles, thinking "belly button to backbone."
• This is my hands-down favorite exercise for relieving back discomfort, and a host of other pregnancy-related discomforts. Begin with four sets of ten, spread throughout your day, including a set immediately before bed.

Butterfly Exercise

• Sit on the floor, leaning at about a 45-degree angle against a firm support with knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Have a partner assist you by kneeling in front of you and applying mild resistance to the outsides of your knees as you separate your knees and lower them to the floor. Release the resistance and return to starting position.
• This exercise strengthens the abductor muscles, making it easier to maintain a good birthing position for second stage.

Kegels

• Tone the pelvic floor by contracting and releasing the pelvic floor muscles as if you were trying to start and stop the flow of urine.

We also covered relaxation techniques to practice now and use in labor as well as an in-depth discussion on true prenatal nutrition and breastfeeding. The breastfeeding was more of an introduction, and we're expected to go to a La Leche League meeting sometime in the next week to get an idea and take notes to speak about next Saturday. I really appreciated that all parts of the class gave Adam a job to do. "Here is how you help with this exercise...this will help you both when she is....your role in the relaxation is....she needs you because..." A Bradley Method catch phrase is "Pregnancy is an athletic event." Hence calling the husbands coaches. Also, a phrase our teacher used that I liked was, "A real man helps finish what he started." While Adam has always been in the "how can I help and support you" camp, it's important to me that the classes are centered around the husband learning how to help his wife get through this intense and draining event the best way possible, and to be there the way she needs him to be.

The woman teaching our class is a mother of three, two she birthed at a birth center and her 13mo old was born at home. There is only one other couple in our class (the most allowed in one class is six couples) and they were incredibly friendly and exciting to talk to. We left feeling energized, excited and looking forward to next Saturday. We even stopped at the grocery store on our way home with a new found resolve to fill the gaps in our diet right then and there. Part of this weeks assignment, along with our exercise and relaxation, is to record what we're eating and mark off our servings as we consume them through the day. We'll see how I do. It didn't occur to me until we were going over it in class that while I've embraced apples over the last few weeks...I've pretty much stopped eating any leafy greens, citrus, or...you get the idea. *GOAL* I WILL do better this week! I will! :)

Daddy Demonstrates Baby Bijorn

Tonight I came downstairs to find Adam strapping on the Baby Bijorn for practice. He then kindly explained how it would work with oo1 strapped in.

Example 1: "See, imagine this is her head..."

Example 2: "...this is where her arms will go..."

Example 3: "...and her legs will go here."

It was almost like she was right there! ;)

29.5wks

Today was a flurry of activity and emotion. 001, who is usually veeery active hadn't budged much in the last 24hrs and I finally called the midwives at 1:30pm. After explaining that I didn't feel her much yesterday, aside from when we blasted Beethoven's "5th Symphony" on my belly and I chugged a sugary drink, and today there had been nothing, they had me go down to the hospital for maternal observation.

In the end, thank God, everything is just fine.

It turns out that my dear girl had turned inward, and because of the added anterior placenta (which moved up and is no longer blocking my cervix-YAY!) it is very hard to feel her right now. They monitored her heart rate for 30min, and it was a pretty consistent 150, and while I could hear the static over her movements on the monitor I only felt her about three times in the whole half hour. (I did feel her more during the ultrasound)

I was a mess, and it took me most of the afternoon to calm down. First I was crying out of fear, then for feeling like a foolish worrier, then for being so grateful she's such a strong little girl. I later recounted my fears and emotions to my mother who told me, "You're being prepared to worry the rest of your life about this little girl." I suppose it's true, and I hadn't much thought about it until now, but I will spend the rest of my life worried she's safe, healthy, happy, confident, street smart, responsible, strong.... My mom also made me feel better about being so overwhelmed with the responsibility of caring for this girl alone in pregnancy. Yes, Adam can do a lot, and my parents give wonderful advice, but ultimately I'm the one keeping this baby safe, providing the nutrients she needs, following the rules to do the best I can for her, and trying to judge when I need help for us, or for her. When my mother was 8mo pregnant with me she ate oysters. Bad oysters. She became so sick that on top of throwing up her stomach was literally convulsing, and all she could think about is "what is this doing to the baby?!" I guess it's a universal rule, motherhood, even as early as pregnancy, is all about worry and wonder.

Our girl was quick to reassure me though. Steady heartbeat, faint wiggles and an ultrasound view full of plenty of fluid and a definite girl. We were also tickled to learn that while the average baby at this stage is 2.5lbs, our girl weighs in at about 3.25lbs and is over the 15in rule. It looks like she may be a tall girl like her mama. The picture from this week wasn't too great, she has continued her signature "not my face" move. Maybe next time there will be a better picture to go with a more relaxed appointment. In the meantime, here's a glimpse of our girl.

Summer, I Hate You.

It is hot. Too damn hot. Amarillo was bad with 111*, but here we are suffering 103* with "as low as 40% humidity. My knees are sweaty. I am completely puffy and don't see my ankles days at a time. While I'm excited that 001 has become increasingly active, I'd appreciate it if she didn't wake me up with her tae bo. And while I realize it's supposed to get harder to sleep so that in some evolutionary fashion I am better prepared for sleep deprivation once baby is here, why am I still awake, yet exhausted, at nearly 5am?!

Humph.

The Nursery

We've been in our new town home just over a week, and I am happy to announce the nursery is done! Well....doneish.

Adam painted it this past weekend, a "peach bud" pink to go with OO1's bedding and it looks so sweet. It took us awhile to get the furniture layout just right, but we both agree it feels good to be in there. In fact as I write this I'm sitting in her rocking chair, feet propped up on the green foot stool. There are some things I'm sure will change in the last remaining weeks, and some details are waiting to be polished. (I'm looking at you un-painted piggy bank.) All in all though, the room feels very ready and inviting. I'm really happy with how it's turned out.

Now...if I could just get the rest of my house finished with as much excitement...

Sick? For No Reason?!

Last night I was sick. Sick, sick, sick. We went to a lovely dinner with our good friend Billy and I was in love with every bite. You would be too if you were enjoying Olenjack's grilled tilapia topped with roasted potatoes and lump crab meat, with a side of goat cheese grits of course! And then there was the chocolate cake...but I'm getting off topic. After a great dinner, and tons of laughter, not two hours after we got home I was sick, sick, sick. I threw up twice, took some pepto and curled up in bed with my water bottle. As Adam and I tried to figure out why I was so ill, I looked at him and said, "But do people just get sick like this, for no apparent reason?" Que Adam's laughter accompanied with his 'profound' statement, "Wasn't that what happened the first four months of pregnancy?"

Oh. Right.

The good news is, I think it was a fluke thing. I feel great today and am excited about nabbing a bite of my leftover cake this afternoon. :)

28-29 Wks

It occured to me that in the hustle and bustle of us, err, Adam & friends, moving us into our new place Saturday I did not get a proper 7mo pregnant picture taken. Since I'll be 29wks in just two days, here's my in between picture.

I.am.huge.

Today, after seeing the picture Adam took of me I exclaimed "it's like I exploded this month!" His reply, "bah ha, yea you kind of did..." How will I fit through door ways in three months?

Oh goodness.

Chaos Amid Serenity

Here are some pictures of our new, messy townhome in our beautiful little HOA. I still need to nab pictures of the beautiful pool. Last night when we took the dogs out behind the townhouse a deer ran by in the tiny wooded area. Let me remind you we are literally in the middle of Dallas/Ft Worth. Anyhow, here are the pictures of our "progress". Yes, it looked worse this weekend....

Kitri asks "What is going on here?!"

Thankfully Adam moved our furniture around Sunday and piled a lot on our porch so we can at least sit in the living room...

Isn't this kitchen inviting? Not to worry, I tackled this all day yesterday and managed to put everything away and make some cookies.

Adam marvels at our serene master suite.

The front of our HOA clubhouse, located next to our townhome.

And it's done. I can think of few things worse then moving 7mo pregnant. Several words to describe me of late are:

exhausted
overwhelmed
emotionally unstable
cry-baby
cranky
pained
overwhelmed (oh, did I already list that? hmmm)

Really, for me at least, the whole process has been pretty painless. We found a place we LOVE, Adam received a call for another interview this Thursday, I had my first appointment with the midwives, we went to our church Sunday and we had a ton of friends volunteer to help get us into our new place with the promise of pizza, cold drinks and camaraderie. However, it wouldn't be an O'Connell-Owens adventure without some bumps in the road...

Friday we signed our lease and took a few car loads over....and then the Accord died...on highway 10...at 1:30am...and we were running on 5hrs of sleep. Thankfully USAA comes with roadside assistance and we were able to get the car towed to our new home for free.

Saturday, when we went to pick up our truck we had reserved earlier in the week they told us it wasn't there. That is, they told us it wasn't there after we waited in the lobby for help for 25min while they chatted in the break room, despite our calls for help. Not only was the truck not there, but it wouldn't be there for us for another 3hrs...meanwhile everyone had shown up at our friends house where our stuff was stored....So, while the first Uhaul lady (at a private lot, not a corporate Uhaul store) told us no trucks were available, I was able to call an actual Uhaul location and secure a truck. Yay wasting an hour and a half! Needless to say, I cried. A lot. I should note this is the same location that charged us for an extra day when we turned in our original Uhaul...Thankfully Adam called Uhaul corporate and they refunded the company's original flub, and then gave us $50 for our missing truck situation.

Today we found out that Adam's check, which is normally handed to him was mailed to our old address, despite them having our new one. What does this mean? Oh, just that our next paycheck we had budgeted around may not show up in Euless for two weeks depending on the mail forwarding speed....Que a meltdown in Dunkin Donuts.

That's Adam's existence right now, trying to calm down a blubbering, swollen, fat, pregnant woman. My sciatic nerve is killing me, my pelvic bone occasionally feels like it's being ground, and I am so overwhelmed at the prospect of unpacking I keep opening boxes, waddling back to the couch and crying. And all I want is a margarita. A big, icy, salty margarita.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to pretend there are no boxes and go to the pool.

Moving? Moving. Moved!

It's true my friends. Adam and I have made the jump back to Dallas/FortWorth! We are happily nestled back in Euless. Back with our friends, back with our church, back with things to do! We looked around and knew it was a "now or never" time with my looming third trimester (which I hit Saturday, YAY!) and that little girl's arrival just around the corner. It has been an exhausting couple of weeks between packing, purging those things we don't quite need, hunting for a new place to live, re-homing our big pup and outdoor cat, driving 6hrs with frequent bathroom breaks, swelling to an unnatural degree up to my knees on Sunday, finding a new obgyn/midwife....so much to do! It feels wonderful to be here though! We've spent the last few days camping out at our good friends' home as we looked for the 'perfect' place, and Saturday Adam and the guys will move our things into our new casa. Our new mini-palace is a two-story condo hidden in the back of a small HOA. I am in love. There is garage parking beneath, two pools and four parks within walking distance. I promise as soon as I don't feel like I'm dying of heat stroke, I'll post some pictures.