Taylor's Birth Story

As soon as Dr. Day uttered those words, "I think today is the day", I kinda started to panic. I was so not prepared, I did not pack a hospital bag, did not clean up the house, I didn't even have the laundry done to pack the hospital bag. So to say I was unprepared is an understatement! But nonetheless, Taylor was coming and by Dr. Day's prediction, it wouldn't be very long! So My mom and I headed to labor and delivery and I called Tim at home!!

I was admitted around 3pm. Around 4pm they started the antibiotics that I had to have during labor because of my positive GBS test. They told me I had to be on the antibiotics for at least 4 hours before they would brake my water. They also started the pitocin around this time too! I was not happy that yet again, I would have to have pitocin....I was really hoping to go into labor on my own this time. Then we just waited, and waited, and waited some more. Around 6pm Tim arrived with the boys :) I was so happy to see them!! Then we did some more waiting.


By this point I was hooked up to all the machines and feeling contractions. They were not unbearable at this point but getting uncomfortable! Around 8pm they started the second bag of antibiotics, I had to have a bag every 4 hours until I delivered. I at this time finally asked for the epidural, I was in extreme pain and just really did not want to deal with it....I was hoping to have a natural birth but with the pitocin the contractions were just a little more than I could handle! So I decided to get the epidural right before they broke my water.

It was around this time that they started to have problems detecting my contractions. They would show up for a while and then all of a sudden just disappear.The were a little concerned about this, I was just hoping my labor did not stall! They tried to reposition the monitor and had no luck. They decided that they would brake my water and go ahead and put an internal monitor in for Taylor's heart rate and my contractions. It was around 9:30pm when my water was broke and the internal monitors were inserted. This worked and they were able to pick up the contractions!

I really thought that Taylor would have been here by this point but nope, I was still at 4cm and she was still really high. I was a little worried that if I didn't start to progress that I would end up with a c-section which I really did not want. This whole time they had been increasing my pitocin periodically to give me stronger more regular contractions. Then we just waited some more hoping things would really start to pick up since my water had been broken. A few hours later I was starting to feel the contractions again, not super painful but definitely getting uncomfortable. They decided to check me again to see if we had made any progress. They were able to stretch and force me to 6cm but Taylor was still high. The nurse said my cervix was very thin though and that there was nothing holding Taylor up so she should definitely drop all the way down.

Shortly after that I was in a lot of pain again and I could tell the epidural was already wearing off....they called for another one. Then it seemed right after I got that I was feeling pressure. Not contractions just a lot of pressure, and I wanted them to check me again. And when she did I was fully dilated and Taylor was right there, she was not even a full finger length in. Now all we had to do was wait for Dr. Day to get there. This was probably the hardest part of the whole labor and delivery!

I love when you have that uncontrollable urge to push and they tell you not to push until the doctor is here....it is the most uncomfortable thing in the world!! With every contraction I could feel her head right there, a few times I actually thought she might just come out before the doctor made it. I keep my legs closed and as tight as I could!! FINALLY the doctor arrived, she had trouble parking.

Tim's Aunt Shari took the boys out to the waiting room and it was just Tim and my mom in the delivery room. By the time the doctor and nurses got all ready and told me to go ahead and push when I felt the need to, Taylor was right there. I held my breath and didn't even get a full push and her head was out!! I could not believe that it happened that fast. Then I finished pushing with that contraction and she just slipped out! One contraction and two pushes and my beautiful little girl was finally here!

I was ecstatic, over the moon :) She was happy, healthy, and beautiful. Taylor arrived at 1:06 a.m. on March 9, 2010. She was 7lbs 8oz...I could not believe she was bigger than her brothers, and was 19 3/4 inches long. I was able to breastfeed her right away and she did great. She was and is perfect in every way!

Week 37....Then end of one journey and the beginning of another!

Well I had hoped that this week would be less eventful than last week, but it turned out to be the most eventful week....Miss Taylor finally entered the world this week!

But lets back up a little. So Friday(3/5) I was suppose to return my 24 hour urine to the doctor and have some blood drawn, but I don't know what was wrong with me that morning but I was just not leaving the house. I wasn't "sick" just tired and didn't really have to energy to drag both the boys up there...oops. I figured I was going in on Monday anyway so if I had to just redo it, I could and it would be no big deal.

So Monday I had my mom go to the doctor with me because just in case they decided to admit me Tim would have the van and could get to the hospital. Here we were again at the doctor....blood pressure, weight, urine sample, ultrasound, NST, then doctor visit, REPEAT! These weekly visits had been going on for about 6 weeks now, but this would prove to be the last one.

The ultrasound went great, she said you were looking good and the fluid had not changed. You were as cute as ever...couldn't keep your hands out of your face! My blood pressure was high though, and I remembered to take my medicine this time :( The NST is where everything changed. You were having another non reactive day, and I was given chocolate and ice water yet again, but nothing was working. You were moving here and there but there was no accelerations or decelerations in your heart rate.

This is when Dr. Day decided today was the day, it was time to pull the plug and get you out. This was week 2 of you having a non reactive NST :( This was the day I had been waiting so long for. My body was ready for you to be here (I was so uncomfortable) but of course I was not prepared at home. This is nothing new for me though, I have never been prepared with the boys either. I though I was emotionally ready, but once I knew you would be here by that night, I wasn't. I was not ready to give up being pregnant, having you being apart of and with me all the time. All I could think about was wanting to go back just a few weeks so I could take that belly picture I forgot to take, feel you moving inside me a little longer, and maybe take just one more nap. But as we know there was no going back! And so it was BABY DAY!!!

Week 36...When it Rains it Pours!

This has probably been one of the hardest weeks so far. It makes me realize all the other little nonsense I have been complaining about was nothing compared to the week I have had. The week from HELL!

Well there was one good thing this week, my baby shower. It was a great way to start the week!! It was nice to have a night out without the kiddos :) My great friends Ann and Laura set up the baby shower and we went to 54th street bar and grill in Arnold, it was yummy! I have some of the greatest friends who just went above and beyond on gifts. I am truly grateful! It was so fun to open up all the girly stuff since I'm so used to blue clothes and trucks and cars.

So a special thanks to Ann, Laura, Aaron, Lisa, Sarah, and my mom for coming out tonight and of course for the gifts. And thanks to Krista for a wonderful gift even though she couldn't make it out tonight.

Here are some pictures from tonight and of all the "goodies"!











Then on Monday I had my weekly appointment. It was just not a good appointment all around. I had my ultrasound where she was just measuring the fluid, which we learned had dropped :( The normal range for fluid is between 6-25cm, I had been at 12cm for the past few weeks, but had dropped to 9cm. Not at the dangerous stage yet, but definitely lower and something to keep an eye on. She said if it would get down to a 5 or lower that would mean I would have to deliver. Then I had my NST, which was not that great either. Miss Taylor you were not very active at all, they did manage to get a few accelerations and decelerations by giving me some ice water! So you ended up passing, but barely!

By this point it felt like dejay vu..this is exactly what happened with Mason and why he was born when he was. Not to mention my blood pressure was high. 160/106 YIKES! But Dr. Day said that even with all this; the BP, fluid, and NST you were still doing alright nothing that would make her want to induce. She then decided to go ahead and check my dilation since I was at 1cm two weeks ago. And sure enough I am at a solid 3cm, woohoo, I am excited about that. The farther dilated I am hopefully the shorter the labor! I was at 3-4cm when I was induced with Mason and his labor and birth was quick! Upon this exam though she did notice that the cyst was filling up again. It had not gotten as big as it was but she went ahead and drained it again. The good news is all the test they ran on it came back negative! So its not infected and its just a cyst. She believes that maybe a pore or something got clogged and allowed a cyst to form, which is common. So we were free for another week.

That was Monday, the next day Tuesday I woke up to a nasty eye infection. Felt and looked just like pink eye, which I used to get ALL the time when I worked at the daycare. I was completely miserable, could hardly open my eye it hurt so bad. But since daddy was at work I had to try and just make it through the day. Around lunch time though I fell and cut my foot open, not bad but it just added to all the was going wrong that day. I had a complete nervous breakdown. I called daddy at work and begged him to come home, which he did because he didn't know what was wrong. I think I was just so overwhelmed with everything from the doctor app., to the eye infection, then the fall, plus the boys were not behaving. I just couldn't take anymore. Thank god for daddy, because when he got home I was able to take a nap :)

By the next day my eye was much better, I was feeling pretty good considering the week I had had so far. But then I started to worry because you had not been moving like normal, something just didn't feel right. So I called the doctor and they had me come in just to be on the safe side. And wouldn't you know it, as soon as I got there and they gave me a roll and some ice water you started moving. You were all over the place. Oh well it gave me a piece of mind!! My blood pressure was still high and the fluid was about where it was on Monday....so she wanted me to do another 24 hour urine and bring it back on Friday and have blood drawn at that time.

She also at this time put me on "bed rest" HA I don't know how that will work with your two brother's at home. Plus daddy is not the greatest help with house cleaning and such, but we will see how it goes. The thought of bed rest sounds so good right now!

I'm hoping next week is not as eventful as this week. I need a vacation!

35 weeks....

I am so close to seeing you Taylor that I can hardly stand it! I am trying to enjoy these last few weeks because I know I will miss being pregnant, but it's so hard! The anticipation of your birth, who you will look like, and holding you for the first time is so overwhelming! But most of all I just pray that your arrive healthy :)

This weeks doctor appointment went fairly well! Grandma watched your brother's so that daddy could actually be there, he has not been to an appointment since we found out you were our little girl. Really I wanted him to come just to keep me company during the NST!

This time during the ultrasound they did all the measurements and not just a fluid checked. She said you are around 6 1/2 lbs and everything looked great! We were even able to get some really awesome 3D picture's this time. Daddy said you were showing off because he was there ;)




The NST went smoothly and you were as happy as ever! It was nice to have someone to talk to for that half hour instead of just staring at the wall!

Then we seen the doctor. She said that you and I are doing great and everything seems to be chugging along down the right path. I asked her about the cyst because it has been bothering me and causing some discomfort, so she asked if I would want her to go ahead and just try to drain it. Of course I did. So that's what happened, she used a needle to drain it and sent off all kinds of tests on it, just to cover all bases. She even at one point said it was a little bizarre, which makes daddy and mommy a little nervous. So were just hoping that all the tests come back fine. She opted out of checking me to see if I dilated anymore for risk of introducing an infection to you. She did say that there is a chance that the cyst could fill back and then we would have to drain it again. I am praying it doesn't because it was extremely painful to have it drained.

Today we had a little party (get together) for Timothy for his birthday. One of mommy's good friends Kelly bought you the cutest little outfit I just have to share! Another reason why I can't wait for you to be here, so I can put all these adorable outfits on you!


I actually have a busy week coming up. We have a baby shower and our weekly doctor's appointment! So until then we will keep chugging forward!

34 weeks

Well I actually had a pretty eventful week! I started not feeling very well early in the week. Very tired, a little nauseous,headaches, sore, extreme pelvic pressure, abdominal pain, I had it all! Well I just took it day by day knowing I had a doctor's appointment on Monday. To me it felt like you had dropped, so I figured that's why I was feeling different especially the pressure.

SO on Monday I had my appointment, the ultrasound and NST went well. I still had plenty of fluid and you looked great. She said we will measure to see how big you are next week...I'm really excited to see how much you have grown! We were even lucky enough to get a few 3D pictures of your face, which we haven't been able to get before because of how squished you are and your position. My blood pressure was 134/92 which is a little high, but not too bad.




I then met with the doctor and talked with her about the pressure and such and she decided to do a pelvic exam to see what was going on. And boy am I glad I had that done because I was not expecting to hear what she was about to say. While doing the exam she did say I was indeed 1 cm which isn't uncommon in a third pregnancy...with Mason I was a 3 for about a month before I was induced. But that was not the shocking news....she also found a cyst in my vagina. She said it is pretty large, like the size of a grape. Now I know cysts are pretty common and usually are nothing to worry about, but I couldn't help worrying. I had never had any of these kinds of problems. She did look it over and tried to determine what it was attached to and such (sorry if TMI) and it was really sore to the touch. She said she could just put a needle in it and drain it and then I would be good to go, but because of all the extra blood flow down there when your pregnant there were a lot of blood vessels in it. She was afraid to pop it because of the bleeding. She she had me look at it with a mirror and touch it so I knew how big it was ( I know..again TMI) so that I would be able to tell if it grew. So now I have to monitor it and make sure that between now and my next doctor's appointment it doesn't grow otherwise I have to go in and have it drained. UGH..as if I didn't have enough to stress over.

The doctor did say that this could be part of the pressure I am feeling since it was large, it may cause some of my discomfort. Ever since then I have done nothing but worry about this darn cyst, but good news I actually think it's getting smaller. I may have popped it a little on my own by just walking. Daddy is a little grossed out by all of this LOL!

I am still having Braxton Hicks contractions, and they actually started to get pretty uncomfortable on Tuesday. I was staring to get a little worried that maybe the pelvic exam jump started labor or something. Just really crampy and uncomfortable. The pain was going all the way to my lower back. I made it to bed and decided to see if these "contractions" would keep me up, if they did I would go in and be checked again. But I woke up the next morning and was actually feeling better. So hopefully they were just practice.

Lets take it easy baby girl...we only have around 3 weeks until full term and 5 weeks at the most until you are probably here.

Here is some humor at my expense to lighten things up. I am at the point now where I fit into nothing...not even my maternity clothes fit. This is odd to me since at the doctor I have not really been gaining any weight, hmm figure that one out. It must all be baby ;) Well the other day I was in a hurry to get ready and grabbed a pair of jeans out of the dryer, ran to the bedroom and began to put them on...to my surprise I could barely get them up much less buttoned and zipped up. These were the one pair of jeans that I thought actually fit. Well turns out they were not mine at all but Tim's...yes you read that right I could not even get daddy's jeans on. Not that I'm calling him fat or anything, but he is bigger than me..or so I thought! Oh well it actually made me chuckle a little!

Yep you guessed it.....33 weeks!

I'm beginning to feel like a broken record when I say that I don't have much to report on this week and that nothing real exciting happened. Although I guess that's kind of a good thing, we don't want anything too exciting to happen HA!

I did have another doctor's appointment on Monday that went pretty routinely. I had the ultrasound first and all she was checking was the fluid level. She said they will not check your growth every week, but every 3 weeks. If they check every week it will look like you are not growing since, that slows down towards the end. Fluid looked great, you have plenty :) She quickly peeked at your organs and those looked great as well. So we got an A+ this week! She snapped me a few pictures to take home. I got two of your sweet little face, and one of your little foot and toes. Which by the way is pushed right up against my ribs, I can totally tell you are running out of room!


Speaking of feet in the ribs...I think you have moved slightly because I have not had any rib pain in a little over a week :) So if your foot was in my ribs, thanks for moving them!

OK back to the doctor appointment. I then had that pesky NST. You were actually not as active as last time, but I figured it was because this appointment was in the afternoon and last week it was early in the morning. You tend to be more active in the morning. But nonetheless you passed :) I have to return yet again next week for the same thing, so just keep it up!

The other day I did experience some severe pressure and pelvic pain which I haven't had too much of a problem with. I was actually having trouble walking, but I forced myself out of the house and actually felt better once I was up and moving around. Another reason why I'm pretty sure you are starting to move down or "drop" as they say!

I also finally got together with my friend Laura to discuss the music assisted childbirth. I actually had a great time, and she gave me some really great information that I think will really help me to achieve my natural birth. So now I just need to get my music together on the IPOD so we will be all ready to go. I am getting excited about this birth which is weird to me, I mean I am still a little nervous, but I feel so much more prepared for what my body will go through.

Dr. Day has already mentioned getting me to 39 weeks and then inducing, which I really do not want, but I have a feeling it will be inevitable with the blood pressure. I'm hoping next week I can discuss my plan for a natural childbirth and hopefully we are able to try other ways to induce labor besides the pitocin if it does come down to needing to induce! I think my only fear right now is that if I do need pitocin then the contractions will be so unbearable that I will give in the the epidural. It doesn't help that my labor with the boys were both induced with pitocin and the contractions were horrible.

For being so cramped in there I still feel you moving around so much. Mostly I feel it really low where your head and hands are. This feeling is one of the greatest things about pregnancy! The one thing I will truly miss when you are born. There is just something so amazing about feeling life move inside you, it brings a smile to my face :)

I will close for now. I can hardly wait to meet you Taylor! Keep growing!

Love,
Mommy

ultrasound, non-stress test, Dr. appointment, OH MY! (32 weeks)

Well the weekly ultrasounds and non stress tests started this week! They make for very long doctor appointments, NO FUN! Except the ultrasounds, I always enjoy those :) But I guess we should start at the beginning before my doctor's appointment.

I started having really bad rib pain this week. Like so bad it hurt to breath, cough, laugh, bend over, sometimes to walk. It really felt like a broken rib would but I was pretty sure It wasn't broken, but bruised most definitely. This would be because I was starting to bruise on the outside, yes you read that right, not a big dark bruise but one nonetheless. I did some research and found that this is actually common in pregnancy and could be because of your position and it may be foot stuck inside my ribs or just you pushing up against them!! I knew you were head down so I figured that must be the problem. At my doctors appointment I mentioned this problem although by this day, it actually was feeling better...go figure. She said she also believes it was the position and to just let her know if it occurs again. So for mommy's sake could you lay of the rib, literally ;)


Monday was my doctor's appointment. I was scheduled for the ultrasound at 9:30AM, then the NST immediately after that, and then finally to see the doctor. The ultrasound went very well, you are still measuring a week ahead which is where you have consistently been measuring so that's great! All the organs and heart rate looked great, and your fluid was good. She did try to peak at your gender just for a added peace of mind but you are so cramped in there already we could not see. But that's OK because I know you are a girl :) We did get a pretty good face shot and I could see hair, quite a bit too!! I am so excited. I was hoping you had a lot like your brothers so I could but bows and such on you. You are still head down, so just stay put!


The non-stress test went perfectly too. You are a very happy little girl and were all over the place. Actually had trouble keeping you on the monitor you were moving so much! I even got to hear you with the hiccups, which is always fun to feel, but even funnier to hear! So..you PASSED! Way to go baby girl!

I will go back next Monday for the same thing. So I guess until then behave yourself!

I LOVE you,
Mommy

31 weeks down....7-10 to go!

Time must be getting away from me, maybe its the pregnancy brain, either way I forgot to post last week so I will just combine it with this week! I'm sure not anything really important or interesting happened anyway ;)

I am still working on overcoming the exhaustion, but that's not that easy with your two brothers tearing the house apart! The doctor did say I was slightly anemic, but that she does not want me to take iron pills because then I will have a whole new list of problems to deal with. I think I will just try to rest as much as I can :)


I have always heard pregnant woman talk about pregnancy dreams and I never really paid much attention to my dreams when I was pregnant, but I have really noticed them lately! I almost always wake up and vividly remember my dream/nightmare, almost too much. You know the kind where you wake up and feel strange all day like things really happened that didn't. Always puts me in a funk.


I am going to be getting together with a friend of mine who is a music therapist and has training in music assisted childbirth to talk about how that can help me achieve my goal of a natural delivery! I am super excited! I am also going to be borrowing a book and CD on Hypnobirthing from another friend and I'm hoping I will be able to use some of those techniques as well!


Some of my friends and family have been teasing me about my natural childbirth and about my "birth plan" its kind of funny to see how times have changed! I don't take any of it person! My mom keeps reminding me about my previous 2 births and how I planned to go pain med free and how I begged for medicine once the pain started. I just keep saying "Yes mother, but hopefully this time I can do it" and I know I can but I am also not naive enough to think that I will not cave in and take the drugs. But once again the goal is to control my pain and not let it get out of hand. Eh we will see how that goes! I think I will be needing a sign like this for my door when I am in labor HA HA!!


That's it for now, I will update next week after my doctor appointment!

Love,
Mommy

Birth Plan

My Wishes for Childbirth - Nicole Ann Massie

Due Date: 03/25/2010
Patient of Dr. Misty Day
Scheduled to deliver at St. Johns Mercy Medical Center


01/20/2010
To Whom it May Concern

I am creating this birth plan prior to my labor in order to make my wishes clear to my doctor, and the nurses at the hospital where I am delivering. These are the items I consider important in the birth of my unborn baby and I would like them to be followed as closely as possible whenever able. I understand that a circumstance might come up where either I may change my mind or that my doctor may feels that it is in my best interest to deviate from my birth plan. I will be flexible, although I ask to be kept informed ahead of time of every aspect of my labor.

Sincerely,
Nicole Massie



Labor
•I would like to be free to walk around during labor.
•I wish to be able to move around and change position at will throughout labor.
•I would like to be able to have fluids by mouth throughout the first stage of labor.
•I will be bringing my own music to play during labor.
•I would like the lights in the room to be kept low during my labor.
•I would prefer to keep the number of vaginal exams to a minimum.
•I do not want an IV unless I become dehydrated.
•I would like to wear contact lenses or glasses at all times when conscious.

Monitoring •I do not wish to have continuous fetal monitoring unless it is required by the condition of My daughter.
•I do not want an internal monitor unless My daughter has shown some sign of distress.
Labor Augmentation/Induction
•I do not wish to have the amniotic membrane ruptured artificially unless signs of fetal distress require internal monitoring.
•If labor is not progressing, I would like to have the amniotic membrane ruptured before other methods are used to augment labor.

Anesthesia/Pain Medication
•I realize that many pain medications exist. I'll ask for them if I need them.

Cesarean
Unless absolutely necessary, I would like to avoid a Cesarean.
•If a Cesarean delivery is indicated, I would like to be fully informed and to participate in the decision-making process.
•I would like My Fiance present at all times if My daughter requires a Cesarean delivery.
•So I can view the birth, I would like the screen lowered just before delivery of My daughter.
•If My daughter is not in distress, My daughter should be given to My Fiance immediately after birth.

Episiotomy
•I would prefer not to have an episiotomy unless absolutely required for My daughter's safety.

Delivery
•I would like My Fiance and/or nurses to support me and my legs as necessary during the pushing stage.
•I would like a mirror available so I can see My daughter's head when it crowns.
•I would like the chance to touch My daughter's head when it crowns.
•Even if I am fully dilated, and assuming My daughter is not in distress, I would like to try to wait until I feel the urge to push before beginning the pushing phase.
•I would like to have My daughter placed on my stomach/chest immediately after delivery.

Immediately After Delivery •I would like to have My Fiance cut the cord.
•I would prefer that the umbilical cord stop pulsating before it is cut.
•I would like to hold My daughter while I deliver the placenta and any tissue repairs are made.
•I would like to hold My daughter for at least 15 minutes before (he/she) is photographed, examined, etc.
•I would like to have My daughter evaluated and bathed in my presence.
•I would prefer to hold My daughter rather than have (him/her) placed under heat lamps.
•I do not want a routine injection of Pitocin after the delivery to aid in expelling the placenta.
•I would like to donate the umbilical cord blood if possible.

Postpartum
•I would like a private room, if available.
•Unless required for health reasons, I do not wish to be separated from my baby.
•I would like to have My daughter "room in" and be with me at all times.

Breastfeeding
•I plan to breastfeed My daughter and would like to begin nursing very shortly after birth.
•Unless medically necessary, I do not wish to have any bottles given to My daughter (including glucose water or plain water).
•I do not want My daughter to be given a pacifier.

Photo/Video •I would like to take still photographs during labor and the birth.

Other
•My support person(s) is/are (support people) and I would like them to be present during labor and/or delivery.
•I would like my other child/ren to be able to visit me and My daughter in the hospital.
•I would prefer that no students, interns, residents or non-essential personnel be present during my labor or the birth.

30 weeks- almost done!!

Another week has past and was relatively uneventful! Well if you consider Braxton Hicks contractions on and off uneventful :) They have been continuing to come and go as they please. I usually get a handful everyday and they are usually in the morning time, they are not painful just uncomfortable and a little annoying! But at the same time they make me excited for what's to come....YOU!!!


I also had a doctor's appointment this week, just a routine one! We did discuss the contractions I was having and she said as long as I have no more that 5 an hour then all is OK. She then listened to your little heartbeat, 155, which is about where you have been the whole time. Then she finally measured my belly...which I know is big :) I go back in 2 weeks to start the weekly non stress test and ultrasounds. I am very excited about having ultrasounds every week, but not about those pesky non stress tests! So hopefully those all go well!!

Daddy has been making fun of my breathing lately because it is getting bad, especially when I'm trying to sleep. I know its because you are getting so big and pushing all my organs up so my lungs are not able to expand, but holy cow I huff and puff just sitting on the couch!! I am looking forward to when you drop into the pelvis because then maybe I can get off the couch or walk across the room without feeling like I'm going to pass out!

Most of this week though as consisted of my thinking about this labor and birth and how I would like it to go. I mentioned in my last post that I was thinking about trying for a natural birth, no pain meds! That is my main goal...well besides a happy and HEALTHY little girl. I am really considering trying the hypnobirthing, and a friend of mine has offered to lend me her hypnobirthing books and Cd's! Another one of my friends is a music therapist and is trained in music assisted childbirth and has offered to talk to me about that too! I am really excited to try some of these techniques because I think it is just what I needed to have the birth that I have always wanted! Through all this research I have also decided to create a birth plan which is something I have never done before. I found it so empowering and I really hope we are able to stick to the plan for the most part! I will add my birth plan in a separate post!

I think that about sums up this week, until next time!

I Love You,
Mommy

29th week!

This has been a rather interesting week!

I have been having Braxton Hicks contractions for a while now but lately they have been happening more often. Not painful just really uncomfortable, but nothing consistent or to make me think I'm in labor. so slow down little one you need to stay in for at least another 11 weeks!

I also have noticed my feet falling "asleep" a lot lately, I'm assuming its because of the increased amount of pressure and weight that I'm now carrying around. It was so bad the other morning daddy's alarm went off and I jumped out of bed like I normally do to hit the snooze and once I was up I realized I could not feel my foot. Thinking I could walk across the room to the alarm, I ignored my sleepy foot and went for it! Bad idea...I could not walk at all and collapsed in the middle of the room, its rather funny now but I wasn't laughing at the moment. Your daddy jumped up to make sure I was OK and help me back to bed. I was OK!

This past week I have been hungry for what seems like most of the day. Like I could continually eat all day, I never feel full! I haven't really had any bad cravings with your like I did with the boys. I remember with Timothy I craved fish for breakfast and even went to steak N shake one morning and ordered the fish dinner HA HA!! But with you its all about the ice cream. Now I'm normally a big ice cream eater and could eat it anytime of the year anytime of the day! I swear I have been eating my chocolate ice cream in the morning and I will eat a half a gallon of ice cream in less than a week...crazy I know!!! I'm sure your loving it but I know my hips and butt are not!


Next week we will be 30 weeks, can you believe it?!?! I am getting so anxious, yet I'm still so nervous even though this is my third little one! I have been thinking about really going for a natural birth this time with no epidural or pain medicine. I have said this with the boys too and ended up with the epidural but I have been doing a lot of research and I know I can do it. I will talk more about that next week!

I guess this is all for now.

I LOVE you,
Mommy

28 weeks!

WOW.....28 weeks! I really cannot believe I am almost there! Its crazy how fast this pregnancy has went. I remember being pregnant with your brother Timothy and it seemed like I was pregnant FOREVER, I was so happy to finally give birth HAHA. Then with Mason it went a little fast, and with you I feel like I have not had time to sit still and just enjoy being pregnant! Especially since you are most likely the last little one for us :)

I had a doctor appointment on Monday morning. I had my blood drawn for my glucose test and they said that if I didn't hear from them the next day then no news is good news! So I think we passed WoOHoo!!! Then I also had an ultrasound done to make sure you were growing well because apparently being on blood pressure medicine can result in small babies. Well we know that that is definately not your case. In fact you seem to still be measuring a week big at around 3lbs 4oz, now I know that the ultrasounds can be off by a couple pounds but I don't think you are :) I even got to see you taking some "practice" breaths and your little tummy was going up and down, and then ofcourse you must have been drinking a little too fast because then you got the hiccups. All of this was very cool to see happen, it must mean we are close, right?! I even spotted a little hair, not too much but some peach fuzz! I just need enough to put some pretty bown in so work on that for me ok!



I go back to the doctor in 2 weeks for a regular chekup, and then 2 weeks from then I go again for a non stress test and an ultrasound to keep an eye on things. Then I will most likely be going every week for a NST and ultrasound until you are here.

Nothing else that new going on, just the same old stuff. Still tired, still having trouble sleeping, still eating everything in site, hips and pelvis still hurt, you know BLAH BLAH BLAH. The joys of pregnancy! But a plus is you as active as ever moving all the time. I LOVE to just lay on the couch and watch my belly do crazy things! One of these days I will catch ya on video....

Oh well until next time,

Love you, Mommy