Our Birth Story

All day Wednesday (at 38 weeks exactly) I'd been having more uncomfortable contractions from 5 a.m. on. I went for my weekly appointment and she checked me and I was a little over 2 cm. She offered to massage my cervix a little to see if that would help move things along, but I could only allow her to do it for a few seconds because it hurt too bad. Got me red-faced and sweaty within seconds! Ouch.

I left the office with instructions for the induction for 11/20. I couldn't believe we only had 6 days left and I had so much to do! Little did I know...

I went to the mall afterwards and walked around for a while, having contractions still fairly regularly, but not regularly enough. After that, I was tired so I went home and really just laid around all the rest of the day.

Around dinnertime, the contractions were still pretty bad so I started bouncing and sitting on the yoga ball hoping that would help. It did for a while and then I decided around 9:00 that I wanted to try to sleep a little since I'd been up for so long. I fell asleep right away and was surprised when I woke up that I was able to actually sleep through the contractions. I started to get up to pee and felt "something" coming out of me. The best way I can explain it is that it felt like a big clot that sometimes comes out the first day of your period. I knew that probably wasn't a good thing so I got up really fast and realized it wasn't stopping! I ran to the bathroom and sat on the toilet and realized I wasn't bleeding (thank god!) but my water had broken. I couldn't believe it. I'd been playing in my head with how it might go down for a few weeks and then it actually happened. I was shocked. I yelled for Chris and told him my water broke and to get me a phone so I can call the doctor. The doctor called back right away and I told him we were headed to the hospital. Chris started gathering some last minute items, helped me get some clothes on (while still having spurts of water coming out), and got me down to the car and we were on our way!

Then...the REAL contractions started. Oh man. I breathed through one or two, texted some peeps and our blog, and we were at the hospital pretty fast. Thank goodness we don't live too far away. I had a contraction or two while in the ER and had to moan and hum through them. They were pretty freaking bad. They got me upstairs to L&D and hooked up and the contractions were coming about 4 to 5 minutes apart. They were HORRIBLE. They checked me and I was still at 2cm and was scared I wouldn't be able to get an epidural because I thought there was a "magic number" I had to be at first. Thankfully, there wasn't. The only issue was that I had to go through an entire saline IV before they'd give it to me. That bag never looked so big. Thankfully it only took about a half hour (the loooongest half hour of my life) and my angel anesthesiologist walked in. The needle stung and weird shocks went down my right butt cheek, but it wasn't bad at all. Not at all what I had envisioned. I had about two more contractions after it was inserted that I felt, and then I sometimes felt a little tightening but absolutely no pain.

Dr. Montilla came in to check me and I'd progressed to 4 cm. Woot! We hung out for a little while and then Nurse Sandy came in to check me again. She felt my cervix and I heard her say softly, "Oh my god." I was like, "What?! What's going on?" and she said I was almost complete. I was at 9 cm. An hour and a half had passed since I got my epidural. Pretty darn quick! The baby was still at -3 station so he had a ways to go so she told me to chill for a while and they'd come back and check me in a bit and see if he'd descended.

About 20 minutes later (I think), we'd been resting (me, Chris and my mom) and I turned to my mother and said, "Mom, can you go get a nurse? I think I feel the baby." It felt like he was trying to come out. Karen, my midwife came in, checked and said, "Yep, that's what you feel! Get ready to push in a few minutes." He'd come down to +2 station already.

Pushing wasn't at all what I expected. I pushed when I felt a contraction, although what I was feeling was actually Carter moving down the birth canal, not any actual contractions. And in between contractions, for about a minute or so we just chatted with each other. It was very calm and easy and a little bit fun. I pushed for about 40 or 45 minutes and our handsome little Turkey was born. I almost didn't have any tearing but that little hand covering his face in all of his ultrasounds? Yeah, he was born that way also. He came out with fist pumping like a little rock star.

I had second degree tears so it took an extra half hour or so for Karen to stitch me up. Once I was settled and Carter was taken care of (Apgars of 9 and 9, thank you very much), Chris went out to get my parents and his mom. Little did we know that they already knew he'd been born. Chris' cell phone phantom-dialed his parents' house and his stepdad answered and heard the entire delivery! Once it was over, he called my MIL and told her. So funny! We couldn't believe he heard the whole thing. So crazy.

Some pics of Carter's arrival:

We're in Love...

Carter Dale Anderson was born at 3:46 a.m. He is 20.75 inches long and 7 lbs 13 oz. Son and mom are happy and healthy!

9 cm!!!! Gonna push soon. This is going really fast!

4 cm...epidural is a godsend.

Honey, it' time! My water broke about 20 minutes ago. Holy shit.

38 Weeks

Good lord...

No More Doctor's Appointments!

Today was my last appointment. Going in, I thought for sure I was in labor. I was woken up at 4:45 this morning with pretty painful contractions, much more painful than the Braxton Hicks I'd been having. They were about 5 minutes apart and lasting a little less than a minute for a few hours, so I got up and showered and shaved my legs (just in case!) and headed out for my regular appointment. Just before I left I used the bathroom (if you know what I mean...and it was soft-serve...a sure sign of labor, right???) and then noticed some blood on my pad. Bloody show? I wasn't sure.

Got the doc's office and had my ultrasound and the baby measured right around the same as last week. His head is 9.5 cm. Yikes. But he still seems to be about 7 1/2 lbs.

Midwife checked my cervix and I'm now a big 2 cm and 70% effaced. She tried stretching my cervix a little but I had her stop because it hurt too bad. Had me all sorts of sweaty. She did say that she saw some bloody show, so it wasn't my imagination.

She confirmed that we are set for Tuesday for the induction. That's 6 days from now!! And that's if I don't go into labor on my own by then, and the way these contractions are, I can't imagine I'll last until Tuesday.

I went to the mall after my appointment to walk around a little and it took me an hour to walk both levels. If you've ever been to Fair Oaks Mall, you'd know it's not a big mall at all. Shouldn't take me that long. But I had to keep stopping for contractions and was walking like an old lady because my groin muscles are so sore. Pathetic.

Sorry to worry you, Erika!

Turkey's new winter hat and mittens

Nursery's Done!

Finally, right? Nothing like the last minute. Feels like we've worked on that tiny little room for forever. But now everything's done except putting his name on the wall, which we can't do until, of course, we decide on his name. It's a much cuter room in person, but you get the idea.

37 Weeks

So weird. I uploaded the pics right after Chris took them, but then forgot to do a blog post! So, here are my 37 week pics.

2 a.m.

What makes me laugh:
Sitting on the toilet to pee and a fart escapes. What makes it better? When that fart makes your baby jump.

What doesn't make me laugh:
Being awake at 2 a.m.

The End is in Sight!

My last day of work is Friday. It's official. I just can't do it anymore. I'm so relieved and so happy.

Happy Term Day!

Thanks, LA, for the Term Day Haiku. I'm so excited to finally be on the receiving end of one of these.

Chubby cheeks, sweet mouth,
All your Mama ever dreamed.
Turkey, you're done now.

In other news....ANDRIA'S HAVING HER BABY TODAY!!!

37 Week Appointment

Went back to the doc this afternoon for my weekly appointment. We were supposed to see her this morning but she was stuck in a delivery so I rescheduled rather than waiting it out.

Anyway, the good news is that these damn contractions are actually DOING something. I'm a big 1 cm dilated and 60% effaced. I know that doesn't mean I'm going into labor anytime soon, but it was a relief to know that they're not completely useless and that my body's doing what it's supposed to do.

We talked some more about inducing and I'm going back next week for another sono to check his size again. In the meantime, she'll schedule it for the 20th because the hospital requires 2 weeks notice, or something like that. We can always reschedule if that date doesn't work. I'll let you all know as soon as we have an actual induction date, if it comes to that.

I can't believe the end is almost here and we'll have our son home soon. I'm so excited!

Sending the love

It's a hard day for Andria today. Please send her a mental hug. She needs it, and deserves it.

Sizing Ultrasound

Had our sizing ultrasound this morning. Man, we created a cute kid! He's got these huge cheeks that even made the sono tech say, "Wow! Look at those cheeks!" Big buddha belly too. She said I'm doing a good job packing weight on him. Guess I should lay off the eclairs (darn you, Andria!). I gained another 2 lbs this week. Not horrible, considering my total is 22 lbs now.

Right now, based on his head, belly and femur measurements, he weighs about 7lbs 6oz. So, if I go to term, he'll be about 9lbs. Not surprising because Chris and I were big babies. I had plenty of amniotic fluid, placenta was in good shape, blood flow to/from the cord were perfect. All is well.

Here's a pic. I think he looks just like his daddy. Nose, lips, everything. That's just fine with me. I think his daddy's a hottie. I can't wait to meet this dude.

Judgy people

Why do I feel like I'm being judged every time the topic of induction comes up? It's our business what we decide to do, and if I wind up with a c-section because of an induction, that'll be okay too because I just want my baby born alive and well. I don't care how he comes into this world.

I've heard horror stories, and I've heard wonderful stories, and I don't know yet which one I'll be...but I do know that as long as I get a healthy baby out of this, it'll be a happy ending. And that's good enough for me.

Bloomin Belly Soaps, Part One

Part One of a series

Bloomin' Belly Soaps was kind enough to send me some samples to review a few weeks ago. I just finished a three day stint with the Niaouli and Lime with Walnut Husk Exfoliant. The sample I got is a puzzle shape, not the belly shape they seem to be known for:





What I liked:

• The scent was really mild. For a pregnant lady with a sensitive nose, this was important.
• The natural ingredients. Acccording to their website, this soap only contains shea butter, essential oils, and walnut husk. I dig that.
• The shape of the soap took some getting used to, but once I got the hang of it, I liked the puzzle shape. It made it easier to hold on to when it got wet and slippery.
• I have a severe acne outbreak on my back and, it's hard to say for sure since it's only been a few days, it seems to be clearing that up.

What I didn't like:

• I only used this soap for three days so I may be mistaken, but it seems that the exfoliant is only on the outside of the soap. So, once you use it for a few days, there's no walnut husk left.
• When I rinsed my skin, instead of my hand sliding nicely down my arm, it slid down in fits and starts, like all the moisture was gone from my skin. I will say, however, that when my skin dried, it didn't feel dry or itchy at all so it could just be the nature of the soap.

So far, I like this soap and am excited about trying the next one. They sent me a whole bunch of goodies to try out for you!

A+ for Chris!

I got the carseat in my car inspected last night at the police station. As soon as the officer jiggled it and looked at it he asked, "Um, who installed this?" I told him Chris did (with my help, thank you very much) and he said...wait for it..."He gets an A+. This is the best installation I've seen in a long time!"

I'm so proud.

Gone Green!!!

Not this one!!! (This one is for you Heather)

So on Sunday, I had someone come over to take a look at my motorcycle. I have been trying to "sell" it for about a year. By "sell" I mean that I only posted it twice within a year's time. I really hated to get rid of it, but I never rode it anymore...so it was time for it to go.

So I also found out on Sunday a.m. that my car wouldn't start. I was on my way to play tennis and it wouldn't start, no lights, no grinding noise or anything. I borrowed Amy's car to go (not thinking...what if she went into labor with a car) to the tennis club. When I got back it was time to prep the motorcycle to show to the potential buyer, and no time to fix my car. So after the deal was struck to sell my motorcycle, I decided it was time to jump start my car. No dice!!! I ended up having to call a tow truck to come out and get my car to the mechanic. The first tow service I called gave me a bunch a crap due to calling just before the Redskin's game...so I wasn't going to give them my business. FAST FORWARD TO MONDAY MORNING........

Good Morning...I got a call from the mechanics and they told me that my $2400 car was going to cost almost $2000 to fix. So now I am donating my car to a company that will teach people to fix cars, and then sell them the car cheap so that they can get to and from work!!! My mom and I have done this before with different cars, and they are a good company to donate to.

So I have gotten rid of all my modes of transportation within two days of each other. Going green ain't easy, but I can be stylish by riding around in my new Surrey-4 wheel bike. Look for me around town, and if you ask, you might be able to get a ride!!!

Oh what a year it's been

One year ago today, we found out we were pregnant with our little Nugget. I'm happy and grateful for the Turkey and I'm sure I appreciate this pregnancy a lot more than I would have if we hadn't lost our first one, but I'm sad nonetheless. I had no idea how much it would hurt to lose a baby and it was the furthest thought from my mind. But, five weeks later, it was over. And I'm apparently still not over it.

This is the post from last year:
http://amy-and-chris.blogspot.com/2006/11/were-pregnant.html

Seriously??

Heartburn at 2 a.m.?? I haven't eaten in 7 hours and have the WORST heartburn. I took a couple of Tums and now I'm just waiting it out trying to get tired again.

36 Weeks

36 Weeks. Wow.

Great news!

I've been dying to post this, but had to wait until she went public. Heather is pregnant!! I couldn't be happier.

36 Week Appt

Still the same. Closed up tight like Fort Knox. These annoying contractions are just that...annoying. They're not doing anything. I guess that's fine at this point. But it's frustrating to feel them ALL DAY LONG and not have them DO anything. Anyway. BP was good, no weight gain this week (woot!), baby's heartbeat was good. Got my GBS swab. No big deal.

Scheduled a sono for next week to check size, fluid, etc. They also want me to set an induction date for 39 weeks. I'm not entirely comfortable with that idea, but there are also things that make me say, "Okay, let's do it." But I'd be doing it for all the wrong reasons, and for reasons that I've judged other people for.

In other news...Chris is "going green." I'll let him explain. Hopefully he'll do a post today or tomorrow.

Just testing mobile blogging for when the Turkey comes.

Test

Hat

I made my first baby hat and it only took 2 days! Cute, huh?


And because Chris' fist is probably bigger than our baby's head will be, he modeled it for you:

35 Weeks

Yep, I'm huge.

Doctor's Appt

BP was good, heartrate was good, weight gain is now up to 20 lbs, got my flu shot, baby is still way head down and ready to rock. Only glitch...I need to reduce my work hours for the next two weeks to ensure that I don't go into preterm labor because of all the contractions I've been having. So, I'll be working 11 to 5 for the next two weeks and then back to my regular schedule. I'm looking forward to sleeping in every day!

Breaking Up is Hard to Do

How do you break up with someone you're not quite friends with, but they're trying really hard to be friends with you?

Odds and Ends

Got some random stuff to post about.

First, my husband is the greatest guy in the whole world. He knew I was having a rough day on Friday (hormones, I'm sure) so he came home with flowers for me. He's never done that! Seeing him walk in the door with them completely made my day and turned my mood around 180 degrees. I love that man. For my birthday present, he got me my Moby. I'm so excited to try it out! I practiced a little yesterday and the basic wrap doesn't seem that hard, and I'm hoping it's even easier when this belly is a little flatter. I can't wait for the Turkey to get here so he can lay in it. Scratch that. I CAN wait. More on that later.

Second, Girl sent the cutest quilt. She's such a talent! Chris was so excited to see a package for us that he started ripping it open and wouldn't even tell me who it was from until I got really mad and forced him to tell me. Then when I found out it was from Girl, I wanted him to rip it open even faster. I'm a dork, but I just adore that woman.

Here's a pic of the quilt she made us and a closeup of the pattern. It's so stinkin cute



Third, I finally finished the baby blanket I've been working on since I was 20 weeks. It's not that it took that long to do, because it's crochet and it's WAY faster than knitting. I'm just too obsessed with my fish game and Sims to make time to work on it. I suck. But it's done now except for weaving in the ends. I think it turned out really cute. I'm proud of myself. Now I need to find a pattern for a hat that would go with it.


And, last but certainly not least, we got to make our first trip to the hospital last night. I noticed around 6:00 that I was having contractions about 5 minutes apart. We were waiting for a table at Carraba's so I figured we'd eat and see how things went and then deal with it after dinner. Still no change about 1.5 hours later so we went home and put in a call to the doctor. It took about 40 minutes for Dr. Montilla to call back, but I told him what was happening and he told me to go to the hospital to get checked out. So, we packed a bag and brought some pillows and headed out, just in case. I didn't think this was the real deal so I surprisingly was very calm about everything.

We showed up at the ER and they rushed us through registration without having to wait. The girl at the front desk looked really nervous when we walked in the door. I had to assure her that I was not in any pain and did not need a wheelchair. It was just contractions, not labor, and I'm fine, but thank you. It was funny. After we registered, they escorted us upstairs to Labor and Delivery. All the nurses were at the nurses' station. I don't think there were ANY patients. We walked in and everyone turned around, smiling, and looked at us expectantly. I was like, "Um, hi everyone!" They laughed and one of them approached us and after I told her my name she knew who I was because the doctor had called and told them to expect me and she took us to a room. I was surprised I didn't go to Triage but I guess it was quiet enough in there that there was room for me in a real room.

She had me put a gown on and give a urine sample and then strapped me in to the monitors. Baby's heartrate sounded awesome. I loved listening to it. She checked me and said I was nice and closed up tight, which was great news. I'd been contracting about every 10 minutes, off and on, for a week so I wasn't sure if any change had been made to my cervix or not. Good to know that they didn't make any changes. So she had us hang out for a while with the monitors on. And of course, my contractions all but stopped. I had a few, but nothing huge. I felt so stupid, but after contracting every 5 minutes for 2.5 hours, you'd think they wouldn't just stop abruptly like that. Idiot contractions. So, after a while they sent us home with instructions to lay low today and drink a lot of water. And that's what I'm doing. Still contracting but I'm not timing them right now. I think they're about 10 to 20 minutes apart. Not sure though.

Some pics Chris took with his cell phone to document our evening:



Whew. That's the longest blog post I've done in forever! Now I need a nap.

On one of my mom boards yesterday, somebody posted making a joke about what all the July mamas (and there are a LOT of them) were doing this time last year (i.e., conceiving their babies). I felt left out. I couldn't ruin the thread by joining in and saying what I wanted to say, which was, "Yeah, we conceived our Nugget on my birthday last year" and then have that awkward silence that follows when they realize that's a different baby than the one I'm carrying now.

It's stupid that it bothered me, because I know it wasn't anything to where they were intentionally leaving anyone out. It was a bonding thing. I get that. It's funny. And I'd be all over that thread had our Nugget survived. But it sucks because she didn't.

I love these women and don't want any of them that read this blog to feel awkward or bad about it. You shouldn't. I'm just venting. And fighting these damn hormones that threaten tears about every 3 hours.

It's my birthday!

I'm now officially IN my 30's. Ugh. I thought turning 30 was bad...31 might just be worse!

Happy birthday to me!

34 Weeks

Hospital Tour

We had our hospital tour last night. One would think that it would ease my worries and make me more comfortable, but in fact it had the opposite effect. We were in the L&D room and I was fighting back tears. I just kept picturing myself on that bed, with doctors and nurses all around me, and got very, very scared. And then Chris and I talked about why that scared me on the ride home and it made me cry even harder. I'm truly terrified about giving birth. And I don't think I was scared before last night. It was more of an abstract thought, I guess.

The L&D room was very nice. Very big with shiny wood floors. Private. But the Family Centered Care room (postpartum) was TINY. I don't know how the Turkey, Chris and I are going to fit in there, especially with visitors!

And I'm sorry to report to my online friends that the wireless internet will not yet be available by the time I'm there. They'll have email through their tv system thing, but I won't be able to post like I'd like to. I'll have Chris send a pic and info to Girl if she doesn't mind and have her do my dirty work for me.

Weekend

What a weekend!

Friday night I woke up at 3:30 a.m. and didn't go back to sleep until 8:30 a.m. I took a 2 hour nap and then Chris and I ran some errands before heading out to Leesburg to have dinner with his parents. We went to my favorite restaurant and got a Dutch Apple Pie from my favorite pie place. The meal was fantastic and life was good.

Until about 11:30 that night. Chris woke up to a nice case of food poisoning. Liquids flying out of all ends. It was violent and horrible and I felt so bad for him. There wasn't much we could do but ride it out, and it finally ended around 3:30 a.m. Poor guy lost about 3 lbs from the whole ordeal.

Meanwhile, while this is all happening, I'm having contractions 10 minutes apart. I'd been having them all day off and on. I started timing them and they were fairly regular, but as soon as I started to worry a little, they'd stop or switch it up to 20 minutes apart. All I could imagine was Chris and I in adjoining hospital beds. We both went back to sleep and woke up at a fairly reasonable hour and he was feeling better and was hungry so we knew it was over. But we spent all day in bed...him recuperating, and me trying not to go into labor. Good times. I got nothing done around the house that I wanted to do, except laundry. Another weekend gone with no progress on the state of our madness that we call home.

Today, Chris is feeling normal again and I've only had a few contractions today so far.

Uh, that's weird

I'm the #2 site that comes up when you search the following term: wife shocked son's penis is bigger then

I don't know why someone was searching that, but they found my blog that way. Very, very weird.

Very excited!

Bloomin' Belly Soaps is sending me some samples to review for this site. Can't wait to try them out and let y'all know what I think. Thanks Anne and Marcie!

33 Weeks

And these are for Heather, to illustrate the sheer madness that is my right foot and ankle. If my left foot weren't slightly swollen, you'd be able to see how bad it really is. Personally, I like the foldover lines. Makes me look like an elephant.

Weird

I know, blog post overload today. And I still haven't even posted my belly shot! But I had to share this.

We had clients in the office today in the waiting room and I could smell their breath in my office. Not that it was bad breath, but I just smelled their breath. Then, they went into the conference room next door to my office and were in there for an hour, and when they just left they kept the door open and I smell it again! Really freaking weird.

Fun News!!

Little Miss Carley's going to have a baby BROTHER!!! I'm so excited!

Doctor's Appointment

Had a great appointment this morning. Gained another 3 lbs, which brings the total up to 17. Not bad considering the crap I eat. BP was 110/70. She felt around and pronounced him HEAD DOWN. Woot! His head's right on my bladder, she said. Then, she took out the measuring tape and went to measure me and then paused and said, "Let's wait a minute." I asked what for and she said I was having a contraction. What??!! Really?? I didn't feel it at all, but when she showed me what it looks like and feels like from the outside, I'd felt and seen that before, but we thought it was the baby moving around in a weird way. After it was over, she measured me and I'm measuring perfectly. So, now my homework is to lay down after work and see if I'm having any contractions and call her if I'm having more than 8 in an hour. I'm fairly sure I'm not.

Shower Pics

Just a few pics from our shower this weekend. I'm not going to bore you with any "opening presents" pictures. And there are LOTS of them.

Baby Shower

We are humbled and grateful for everyone's love and generosity.


This picture does not include some of the other items we've gotten in the past few weeks, including our stroller, glider, crib, carseat, etc. It's pretty amazing how generous people have been. It's a bit overwhelming.

Thank you to everyone who came and those who couldn't come but either sent gifts or their love to us and the Turkey. We love you, too. :-)

More pics to follow of the actual event.

32 Weeks

This is what Chris came home to...me and Rico cuddling on the bed. I was EXHAUSTED.

I wanted to use this as my weekly belly shot so I wouldn't have to get out of bed. But I realized I needed a "good" one to put in my book, so I had Chris help me out of bed. And he got this picture (hot, right?):

So...here are the real ones:


And then we washed some baby clothes. Yippee! I still need to wash toys and loveys, but the clothes are all done. Very exciting.

Come out, come out, wherever you are...

Who are you? I know I get about 70 original hits a day (which is pretty pathetic but exciting to me), so there are more of you out there than just my mom (and the few "regular" commenters). What's your name? Do you have any children? Any advice you can offer a FTM with absolutely no clue what she's gotten herself into?

3 a.m.

3 a.m. I'm wide awake but exhausted enough to sleep for another several hours. This blows.

And if anyone tries to comment anything along the lines of "Just wait until the baby's here!" or "It's your body getting you used to being up at all hours", you're going on my shitlist. Just so you know.