Dr. Appointment

I met with my midwife today.  It was an interesting appointment.  For about 15 minutes there was talk that the baby had flipped and was breech, but after a sonogram,  they said that no, that wasn't the case.  It was great to see her spine.  All of the bones lined up so perfectly. 

After listening to heart tones (120 bpm) and confirming she was in the correct position, they decided to put the fetal monitor on me to make sure that the correct hills and valleys were happening.  (I'm sorry, I don't remember the technical terms.)  For about 25 minutes, I listened to horrible Bloomington Normal pop music on the radio and pushed a button,  like those on Jeopardy, every time I felt the baby move.  That showed everything was fine too. 

Then came the exam.  There is really no prepping for the shock of having someone put their fingers in your cervix.  Of all the discomfort I've felt in my pregnancy, so far, these exams take the cake.  The good news, I have progressed from my previous exam - I'm at 3 cm.  Not that I was encouraged by finding that out. 

So we talked time lines and options. Discussing how long I can wait before they feel it's necessary to induce with medication.  I'm hoping it won't come to that, so my goal now is to have this baby before next Thursday.  There are natural herbs and oils that will help, but only if my body is ready for this next part.  They are more like contraction encouragement than inducers. 

More to come, you can be sure of that!

40+ weeks. Babies are not like library books.

Due date has come and gone.  Thank you to everyone who has been encouraging and offering support in this.  It really does feel like she has a village of supporters behind her! 

This little tyke will not be an October baby, which sways the scales in November's favor for birthdays.  Dan's dad and sister have birthday's in October.  My dad and sister have birthday's in November.  Dan pointed out that our little family will be a November, December, January line up.  All of this is just part of the talk that keeps me slightly distracted from the fact that I am still pregnant.  (Not that I can avoid that for long - I'm in good spirits but moving is a bit more cumbersome these days.)

I was due on Sunday.  I went to work on Monday.   I thought it would be fine, but I got so overwhelmed with the number of people talking about the fact that I didn't have the baby (!!!) I started to get pretty upset.  I know that she will come when she's ready.  I know that other's know she will come when she's ready.  However, when talking about it, they all seem to forget that.  I started to feel like a big failure for not having the baby when I was "supposed to." 

I didn't go to work today.  

I was hoping to work up until I went into labor, but I'm becoming attracted to the idea of be done.  And being home.  And resting.  And not worrying about bookfairs and digital sales.  In fact, I've been reading a book all morning!  All morning! 

I'm having contractions, but they are about 10 to 20 minutes apart and vary in length.This has been the case for the past three or four weeks.   Dan and I have big plans to go grocery shopping.  Yesterday our big plan was vacuuming.  Maybe tomorrow our big plan will involve a hospital!  I have an appointment tomorrow for my weekly checkup so we will see what's going on.  I opted out of getting checked last week (as it is a wholly unwelcome experience) but now that I'm past due (even that is a horrible term) I'm sure they will want
to. 

Dan's sister mentioned that 11-11-11 would be a great date to have her, but I'm really hoping that she comes before then.  C'mon baby!  Perhaps she's waiting for grandma to arrive on Friday?  We'll see won't we!  As Dan pointed out, she will come out.  I shouldn't worry about when.  He makes it sound so easy!

Week 38!

I'm in week 38!  Holy moly!  This past week (just before we were going to put it in the car) one of the cats decided to pee in the car seat.  Yuck.  However, I know how to take apart and put back together that contraption now.  We'll see if the smell is fully out after it sits in that little closed space for a few days.

I'm having a harder time getting around.  I'm swollen.  Bending over is iffy.  Dan gets to (read: has to) help me put my socks on.  At the end of the day there is a hilarious line where my calves are puffy up to my socks.  *It's a bit creepy actually.  I mean, do I really have that much extra fluid in me? 

So.  Two weeks is what they say.  Anyone taking bets on when she'll pop?

Bum Geniuses!

It's been a bum filled weekend!  Dan and I picked up our bum genius diapers yesterday from Pinstripes and Polkadots .  Their website has a ton of useful info on all aspects of cloth diapering, so feel free to educate yourself.  An interesting thing I found out is the diapers become more absorbent the more they are washed (similar to new towels...they don't soak up so good when they are new!).  So part of getting ready for baby is to wash these little guys on hot 3-5 times.

It's also not recommended to use dryer sheets because of the film they can leave of them (them being the diapers and your the sensitive child), and over time that film can mean the integrity of the diapers is weakened.  So, we are using these now:

There is still a bit of static, but not anything to get upset about.  Dan is a bit sad that we won't have yummy smelling clothes as they come out of the dryer for a few years, but we will make due.

Today!  There were two projects this morning: Dan wanted to learn how to make scones, and I installed the sprayer on the toilet.  And it was all done before 10:30!  We are amazing!

Dan made cranberry orange and pumpkin.   (drool.....)  He is a good student!  

Piles of Scones!

 If you want to see my sprayer installation, there are pictures below.  It was super easy, took NO TOOLS, and I only had to move one cat. 

This is the new little bathroom sprayer.  It's very similar to the nozzle that is on a kitchen sink.

These are all of the parts.

Start by turning the water off to the toilet and flushing once to get the water out of the line.  Put a small bowl and some paper towels under the fitting before you unscrew it. 

Line the teeth up so the new fitting screws on properly, and "hand tighten" - that is, don't kill yourself to get it tight.  The rubber washer in the threads will keep it from leaking.  *Not shown: attach the hose.  This has a great teeth grip that will let you push the hose in but not pull it out.  The part with the bright blue spot on it is the shut off valve for the sprayer.  Don't turn it on until you stick the other end of the hose in the spray nozzle. 

You can see the hose in the nozzle.  All that's left is the nozzle hanger!  Remove cat from tank lid and slip the plastic hook over the edge.  Put lid back on.

Turn on sprayer valve and spray!  It works!  If it doesn't work, that's because I forgot to turn the water line back on.  Do that and check under the toilet to see if any parts need to be tightened a bit more, then proceed to have a water fight. 

Or, just hang the nozzle on the toilet. 

Feel free to replace cat on top of toilet, but if yours is like mine he will replace himself. 

 Great right?!  Now when the poo starts flying (hopefully not literally) we have a tool at our disposal.  Just because we're using cloth diapers doesn't mean we like poo any more than you do.

Have a good day!

And PS - A huge congratulations to Julie and Jamie on the arrival of their baby girl, Allison Nicole!  Yay babies and friends having babies!

Latest appointment (possible TMI) and cloth diapers

I had a doctors appointment yesterday.  It was the first time I was "checked" by my midwife.  Wowza!  I wasn't quite ready for that experience!

Turns out I'm a cm dilated and 60% effaced.  The end of being pregnant is near!

Dan and I have also started taking birthing education classes from our Doula.  The first meeting felt long, but again, it kept me up past my bed time, so the last hour was tainted by the fact that I wanted to be in pjs and sleeping already.

We are in the class with two other couples.  One of which I know through a friend, and we were facebook  pals, even though we met for the first time at the meeting.

Our doula open the class up by wanting to talk about our fears with child birth.  Seemed like a good idea.  The other two women both talked about the pain involved with pushing a human out of their body.  I'm not too worried about that - which I don't know why, especially after my last exam open my eyes to the whole new world of pain I will soon be experiencing.  When it came to me I talked about control, or the lack thereof that I'll have/not have in the birth.  And I cried a lot.  It was a bit awkward to be snot faced in front of 5 strangers, but whatever.  I'm pregnant.  I'm gonna cry if I want to. 

We'll be meeting for the next three Mondays, which if baby Swift stays put until her due date, it will work fine.  If not, well, then we'll get hands on training with birthing education!

The last new development in our baby world is Dan and I took the leap from talking about using cloth diapers to actually buying our cloth diapers.  We are picking them up on Saturday.  I'm super excited (about diapers...?)!  We are using Bum Genius if you are curious.  You can be sure I'll let you know what I think.  *And because I just have to share, our diapers are coming in Butternut, Clementine, Twilight, Ribbit, and White.  There going to be a cute diaper butt in our future! 

Bubble

Noodle

Sweet

Blossom

Butternut

Clementine

Grasshopper

Moonbeam

Ribbit

Twilight

White

Zinnia

It really is as easy to use as a disposable diaper. Using the snaps on the front of the diaper, adjust the size if needed, put the diaper on your baby, wash, dry and re-use. No extra steps. No stuffing. No cover required. Our one-size diapers are designed to fit most babies weighing between 7 and 35 pounds.

Highlights

• Absorbent layer integrated into the waterproof outer layer.
• One step cloth diaper - no stuffing!
• Now also available in snap closures! Two rows of snaps ensure a trim, bumGenius fit everytime!
• Ultra-absorbent, certified organic cotton inner.
• Gentle leg elastic contains the mess!

6 weeks to go.

Whoa.  I am huge. 

I've been feeling a bit more tired at the end of the days, but not horrible.  There was a day when I didn't make in to bed until 9:30 because of a meeting, and man was I cranky bear the next day!

I've become resolved that all the things I'd like to get done at work before I leave won't get done, but not for a lack of trying!  6 weeks left and I'm perfectly fine  with it coming along however it happens, work done or not.  

Last week the cats all went to the vet.  I've been a bad momma in getting them in, but all is well and all are healthy.  This fur ball below is Kodak.  He is a healthy 11+ pounds.  Doesn't he look fantastically huge in the picture?! 

8 weeks to go!

 Yesterday two of my favorite people got married.  They asked me to take their photos, but there was a brief moment where I got to join in on the silliness and was on the opposite side of the lens. 

Baby bump was on display all evening, so we took a moment to bring obvious attention to it. 

 

Dan was such a trooper the whole day.  It was one of those days where I appreciated his independence.  I would flit around the room taking photos, then come back to him to get an energy boost.  Sam sat at our dinner table, and she was insistent in taking our photo.  I'm so glad she did!  I love this photo!

I'm using these pictures as my 32 weeks post.  I'm 32 weeks!  Woohoo! Only 8 more to go and I still feel wonderful.  

There will be photos coming soon of the great weekend I had last week, where Ciara and Sarah came to visit and threw me a baby shower.  They are a bit busy right now (traveling home to Turkey, and with parents to London *Respectively*) so when they get a chance to catch their breath, I'll post 'em up.