5 Good Things

32 weeks

1. A hubby who makes me feel very loved.

2. A snuggly doggy at my feet.

3. My baby shower this Saturday.

4. A new yoga ball to sit on and take some weight off my pelvis.

5. Tator tots.

The Tour

At this week's childbirth class we went on our hospital tour. We were really excited to see where all of the action would happen. The maternity ward was nice, not too hospital-y and nice and quiet while we were there. I have to admit, I was a little nervous that we would hear horrible screaming, but we managed to avoid that. We saw the triage unit (where you go first to make sure you're really in labor), a labor room, the nursery, and then the post-birth rooms. We saw one baby out in the hall. The whole thing made me really excited for the big day. It made Paul nervous though, poor guy. He said that it really hit him that we're only weeks away from having our baby, and we still have lots to do to get ready! I'm confident we'll get it all done though, we really do still have time. And having all of this stuff to keep us busy will make it easier to pass the time and avoid getting too anxious!

In our class after the tour we learned about the hospital's pain medication/medical intervention policies. So far I've been really open to being flexible, just trying to go with the flow as much as possible. After hearing about all of the side effects and seeing all of the machines you have to be hooked up to in order to have an epidural (holy lack of mobility), I'm really hoping I can do this without any of that. I'm not delusional, I know it will freaking hurt, but I really am not into being confined to a bed for hours at a time. I think I would be miserable. But I guess I really don't know how I'll feel then, so I'm still trying my best to not overthink it, remind myself that I need to be flexible. I am definitely going to get cracking on that birth plan though!

Labor

31 weeks

So I'm really liking our Childbirth classes. Sure, they can feel cheesy and cliche, and it is hard not to feel kind of silly when we're practicing breathing exercises, but for the most part, we are getting a lot of good information and it sure does make our big day feel like it's actually going to get here.

Paul grumbles a lot before we have to go (it is kind of a pain that the classes are from 7-9 on a Tuesday night, 4 Tuesdays in a row), but when we get there, he seems to enjoy being there with me, hearing about all of this stuff. It's all about learning how to be a good coach, and since the beginning of this pregnancy he's been nothing but supportive and eager to help me. I am lucky. Plus, last night the coaches learned a bunch of massage techniques, so that was a nice class for the mamas!

We also watched the dreaded birth video last night. It wasn't too bad, despite the fact that it was very early 90's, on a very scratchy VHS tape, and the father was wearing a dress shirt, tie, and suspenders for the entire 12-hour labor. Oh, and don't forget the shot of the baby coming out, which we weren't really prepared for, for some reason. We should have known it was coming really! But I guess it was good to see what exactly is going to happen. Paul made fun of me because I got all teary at the end, but how can you not? They were so happy, you can't help but think about how amazing it's all going to be. I really can't wait.

For some reason, I am not feeling afraid or nervous about labor at all. Before I got pregnant, it was one of my great fears. But as soon as I found out I was pregnant all of a sudden the only way I could think of labor is as a big adventure. And I'm still feeling that way with 9 weeks to go, even after learning about all of the gory details. I just really feel like I am prepared, I can handle it, and the outcome is going to be so worth it. Man, I hope it stays that way!

Pregnancy Is My Favorite

16 weeks

18 weeks

23 weeks

24 weeks

25 weeks

27 weeks

29 weeks

30 Weeks down, 10 to go. Here are the highlights so far:

Deciding to start trying.

We had been married for 3 and a half years, with a house and dog for 3 of those years. I kept telling myself we were practicing with the dogs, that we'd know when we were ready. I am the oldest of 5, my youngest brother is 9. I enjoyed playing with him and then leaving him to go home afterwards, let my parents do the rest. Paul, on the other hand, has been ready since about 6 months in to our marriage. He would drop hints every now and then, but the last year the hints were getting stronger. He wasn't pushing, but he liked pointing out cute babies all the time, saying, "wouldn't it be nice...?" I consider myself very lucky that my hubby was ready before me, I know how tough some women have it in that department! I started getting the twinge about a year ago, but little things nagged at me, I kept wondering if we were really ready. Then our best friends Mike & Kelly announced they were expecting their first. I was so excited for them, and loved seeing how happy they were. It really made me realize how much I wanted that for us. We started trying that week (mid-April) and were pregnant by September, just in time for our 4th anniversary. Those few months in between were tough, due to my aforementioned impatience, but we made it through, and woo boy, was it exciting when we first saw those 2 pink lines!!

The first ultrasound.

We had our first ultrasound in October 17th, a dating ultrasound. We found out we were 9 weeks along, our due date was set at May 21st. We were beyond excited to hear our baby's heartbeat and to see her floating around in there, even though she still looked like a little bean rather than a baby. Both of us got pretty teary-eyed. I wasn't really showing yet, so it seemed a lot more real then!

Starting to show.

It seemed like forever before I started to show. For the first 3 or so months I kept thinking I was getting a little belly, but it wasn't much to speak of and really just looked like I was developing a beer belly. I couldn't wait until people could tell I was pregnant just by looking at me. It didn't really feel like I was pregnant. Plus my little brother kept asking my mom what was going on because he thought "pregnant ladies usually have fat bellies." So when I woke up one morning around 16 weeks and all of a sudden a little round belly was poking out, we were thrilled. We could finally tell there was a baby in there! Every week it's a bit bigger. We love watching our baby grow.

Our second ultrasound.

Our second ultrasound was January 4th. We scheduled it for 20 weeks because we wanted to find out the gender. She was very cooperative that morning, flipping around so the technician could get all the views she needed. We saw her hands, her head, her feet, all 4 chambers of her heart, her legs, her arms, everything. We saw her pushing up against the walls of my uterus with both her hands and her feet, and I couldn't believe that I didn't feel her yet! When the technician zoomed in for a profile view, she was saying that usually babies keep their fists balled up in the womb. Right then Annie flattened out her hand and pushed at the wall above her. Then she opened and closed her mouth a few times, like she was laughing at us. Paul said that's when he started tearing up. I started to lose it when the technician asked, "are you ready to find out the gender??" We nodded and I started sobbing as soon as she zoomed in to show us it was a girl. I'm not usually the sentimental type, but I felt my Grandmother's presence so strongly right then. We had decided 5 years ago when she passed away from cancer that we would name our first girl after her, so now we knew we had our Annie. I was afraid Paul would be a bit disappointed because he had his heart set on a boy, but he said that he pretty much didn't care after he saw her opening and closing her mouth in there. The ultrasound was amazing, we are almost hoping we will have to go back for another one!

Feeling her move.

The morning of my January 14th doctor's appointment I thought that I felt some fluttering around while I was still in bed. The next morning I felt some definite thumps and knew for sure it was her. Paul couldn't feel her until a few weeks later, but we sure had fun waiting to feel her jumping around in there. About a month later, when I was off from work for Martin Luther King, Jr. day, I was sitting on the couch watching some tv when I felt some really strong kicking, looked down, and saw the sides of my belly pushing out. That was the coolest. Now she keeps me company all day at work, all night while I'm sitting on the couch watching tv, and in the morning just before I get up. It's the best. I think I'll probably miss this the most when I'm not pregnant anymore.

On Being Patient

27 Weeks, Top View

So I love being pregnant. I'm trying really hard to stay in the moment and enjoy it, since I'll probably only do this 2 or 3 times. (Paul always said 2, I always said 3. Now that we're pregnant he's so excited that he's saying 3 now. We'll see if that changes when the baby gets here.) I love everything about it. I love hearing her heartbeat, the ultrasounds, feeling her move around doing her baby aerobics, my family and friends' excitement when they see me, and most of all seeing my husband so happy every time he looks at or touches my belly. But I'm also the world's most impatient person, so waiting for this baby to get here is excruciating. I guess that's what pregnancy's all about though, time to dream about what she will look like and what her personality will be like. How Paul is going to be the best daddy. And it's definitely a good thing we get 9 months to prep. There sure is a lot to do to get ready! We are enjoying it immensely though, and spend most of our time being excited rather than panicky. We'll let you know if that changes in the next few weeks though!

First-timer

Well, I have officially decided to enter blogland. I've been enjoying other blogs for a few years now and told myself that when I start having kids I'll start one to keep a journal for them. I am 30 weeks pregnant so I figure now is as good a time as any! We'll see how this goes. I'm notoriously indecisive so things will probably change around here a lot, but it should be fun for the nerd in me.