37 Weeks

I have SO much to talk about this week! It's been awhile since I've updated so I'll start with my last doctors appointment which was on the 21st (I was still 36 weeks). Everything was fine with both the baby and me. My GBS test was negative so I don't have to have an IV when I go into labor. Her heartrate was 150 and my fundal measurement was "right on" (finally, the baby has dropped). The np did a weight estimate on her and guessed she was around 6lbs. She also checked me and I was still thinning but not dialated. She said she could fit her fingertip in my cervix though, so I'm assuming I was a tiny bit dialated.

I had my baby shower on Friday the 22nd and it went AMAZING! I am SO blessed! It was absolutely beautiful. A couple of the gifts made me cry... one was from my aunt, who told me that my grandma had given her money to put towards a gift for me (she passed away in January). The other was from one of my brothers old nurses, who used his trach ties on a hand made baptismal gown for my daughter (he passed away in 2003 at the age of 15). They served really good food and my cake was so cute! I'll post pictures soon :) After the shower I ordered everything else she needs. I'm waiting on two more packages and then we will have everything (except a playmat, which needs to come back in stock).

Yesterday I was feeling pretty sick (flu like symptoms, mostly nausea) so I decided to go into the ER (not thinking much of it). I got there about 5pm and was told that since I'm 37 weeks I had to go directly up to labor & delivery. One of the first things I did when I got up there was throw up. They hooked me up to the fetal monitor as well as a contraction monitor and I was having contractions! I couldn't even feel them at first. The nurse asked me a bunch of questions, mostly about medical history and then went to get the doctor. I was checked (which hurt SO bad) and found out that I was 2cm dialated, 60% effaced, and the baby was at -2 station. However, he said he could feel her head. He told me that 37 weeks is pretty early to induce so if I went into labor it would pretty much have to be on my own. After he left I sat around for a bit then decided I wanted/needed to walk. I was hopng it would help push me into full on labor. I walked for a little over 2 hours and was having some pretty good contractions. I could still talk through them but they were painful. Finally around 9pm the nurse came back in to get me back in bed and hooked up again. She told me that the doctor was going to check me again and then they would decide what they were going to do with me. He had to help deliver 2 babies before I could be checked so I had to wait (insert screaming pain here, as well as when I first arrived). In the meantime I threw up again. When he finally came in to check me I had made no progress :( I was pretty bummed about that. Going through 5 hours of contractions and having nothing change kind of sucked to hear. They gave me something for my nausea and then told me I could be hooked up to an IV for fluids and stay as long as I wanted (into the morning if I wanted). The doctor told me that if I wasn't having nausea they would just send me home so I decided to just go home and labor there. I figured if it was real labor it wouldn't stop, I could do it at home, then come back when I needed to. Plus, Jake was there with me and he didn't want to stay (even though he said it was my call, I could tell) but I wanted to be in my own bed and didn't see much of a point in staying. I was feeling fine nausea wise and my contractions were leveling off. We got dischargerd around 12am. I got into bed around 1:30am and was woken up by 3am with painful contractions. I didn't get back to bed until after 4. I woke up a couple more times into the morning with contractions but they never lasted. Bummer. I went about my day with almost no pain at all and LOTS of energy, I guess all I got out of it was a real energy boost.

Tonight I started having painful contractions again. They only lasted for a couple hours though. I am having pretty bad pressure and cramping. I hope this means good things are to come, soon!

I have a doctors appointment in the morning so we'll see if anything has changed! I'll update then :)

36 Weeks

I was supposed to have a doctors appointment today but it was cancelled because she was "out" ...maybe delivering someones baby! I rescheduled for Thursday so I will update on that then.

Everything is going well. I'm having more braxton hicks contractions so I'm *hoping* something is going on down there (maybe a little dialation?!) Probably not... I'll be so excited when things finally get rolling and she is offically on her way!

I'm feeling pretty good with only minor pain. It still hurts to get up at night to pee, roll and get out of bed in the morning but I'm sure that is 100% normal. I haven't had any crazy cravings, only small ones. I eat what I want once and it goes away so that's nice haha.

Jake wants to take one last trip to Missouri before she is born. He said he would wait to see what the doctor says on Thursday and then decide but I don't think she is going to come this weekend so I'm sure he will be taking his trip. I get lonely when he's not around but I understand why he wants to go. His friend is coming home from the army for the weekend and if he can't see him now he probably won't see him again for a long time. The baby clearly comes first though so if there is even a slight chance that she could come, he won't go. It's bittersweet, I want so bad to be dialted and labor to start but I want Jake to be able to see his friend again before he leaves for Iraq or something crazy like that. I wish I could travel still, haha...

The baby shower is Friday and I'm so excited for it!

35 Weeks *Update*

Everything is going great! I'm so excited to be this far along and I can't wait to meet my little princess!

Everything went well with my doctors appointment. I was really nervous to be there without Jake but the GBS test wasn't bad at all... it was just a swab around the outside areas, not internal at all. Needless to say, I was stressed out for nothing. Her heart rate was 140 and my fundal measurement was 37cm. I'm not dialated at all and my cervix is soft but still thick. I hope that changes soon! Total weight gain so far is 22 pounds. I'm hoping to not go over 30 and it's looking really good right now.

I'm still having pains and it's still hard to get out of bed to pee and get up in the morning. I feel like I have to be rolled around when I turn over in my sleep, it is horrible but as always, worth it. I'm having braxton hicks contractions and a new sharp pain in my lower left side. I'm not sure if I have had a "real" contraction yet. I know I have had pains but they never felt like bad cramping or anything like that so I'm not sure, I guess I will find out soon enough!

Next Friday I will start natural inducement. Not only will I be full term but I have my baby shower that day too! I'm really excited for it.

Tomorrow I am ironing all of her onesies and organizing her room. It's by no means unorganized but I'm really feeling the need to make everything perfect, hello nesting stage!

35 weeks

TODAY!!! That means only 35 days left until my due date and 14 until I'm full term! I'm not updating until Wednesday when I see my doctor, I just had to say that! Yay!

34 weeks

I've been sick, again! I threw up 4 times yesterday and have had the worst pains in my stomach. I think it's just the flu bug but it's defiantly worse being this far along and dealing with pregnancy pains too.

We went in for my doctors appointment yesterday. Everything still looks great with the baby. Her heart rate was 140 and my fundal measurement was 36/37cm. I asked the npc why it's so high when I'm only 34 weeks and she told me it's because the baby is REALLY high and assured me it's not because she is huge, thank God! I wasn't crazy about yesterdays appointment. I felt violated but I won't go into that, Jake knows what I mean. It's all worth it as long as I know the baby is ok though. My next appointment is May 13th and I will have my group strep b test done. Exciting... haha.

I've been having more and more braxton hicks contractions and my boobs have been "leaking". It's exciting knowing that means she's getting ready to meet us in person!

Her room is complete (for the most part). We just need a few finishing touches and we will be 100% ready for her! My baby shower is the 22nd. I will be exactly 37 weeks (full term!!) It's kind of a late shower but that's ok as long as she doesn't come before that, haha.

Our maternity pictures should be here by Friday! I can't wait to see the final product!!

33 weeks

I can't believe I only have 26 days until she is full term and 47 until my actual due date, I don't know where the time is going! I have mixed feelings about getting further along and knowing that she's coming soon. Sometimes I want to hold her in me forever and sometimes I feel like I'm ready for her to just be out here in the world with Jake and me.

We had our maternity pictures taken last Thursday. I'm excited and nervous to see them... haha. We should be able to see them by next week sometime, fingers crossed that they turned out nice :)

Our birth class was yesterday. I enjoyed it but Jake... pretty much went for me, which was really nice of him. I love him <3 I think he secretly took a little something out of it though (like what to do when I'm in labor!), don't tell him of course. We went over EVERYTHING including stagtes of labor, the actual birth (with and without medication), newborn characteristics and hospital stay, relaxation and breathing, cesarean births, postpartum cares and concerns, and baby care (bathing, temp taking, infanft safety, and infant feeding). I don't think I would take the class again but I'm really glad that we did it once. I think both jake and I are a little more prepared for labor and having our daughter.

We are getting her dresser tonight. My brother is bring it up from the Twin Cities so I'm really excited for that. It's a little rainy so I hope it doesn't get wet! After it's here, her room will be DONE!

Everything as far as I go is still the same. The pressure is gettting worse every day. It's so worth it though <3

32 weeks

I had a doctors appointment yesterday which went well. The scale said I've gained 25 pounds and my bp was good. The baby's heartbeat was in the 140s and she's still head down (which I already knew because I feel her in my ribs all the time). My fundal measurement was 35cm. I hope that doesn't mean that she's a big baby... hopefully it just means that my original due date was more accurate, if anything at all. I asked my doctor about getting a membrane sweep and when she will do one. She told me I can get one done at 39 weeks. I was hoping more along the lines of 37-38 weeks but oh well. Hopefully she will come sooner than 39 weeks on her own. I know the day she's full term I'm going to start doing everything to naturally induce myself (no, not crazy stuff like drinking castor oil). I have one more 2 week appointment then I start going every week! That is so exciting to think about!

Symptoms are still pretty much the same with the exception of my ribs, which are hurting a lot more and it's getting harder to move. I have a new love of ice pops and red grapes. I could eat them all day :)

We are getting our maternity pictures taken on Thursday. I'm really excited, it should be a blast! We are hoping for outdoor pictures since it's supposed to be 70 and sunny. We'll see what happens :)

We ordered her dresser and paid to get it shipped up from the store in the Twin Cities but my brother is going down this weekend so he will just pick it up for me, which saves us a lot of money. I'm really excited to get it in her room because my mom washed all her little clothes, now all the baby needs is that dresser!

31 weeks

Everything is going great! My ultrasound last week went well and we got some really cute pictures and video of the baby. We bought the dresser that matches our nursery furniture so I look forward to getting that in the nursery and putting all her clothes away.

We got the mattress and stroller in the mail so her bed is all put together and looks adorable! It took me a minute to figure out details of her stroller but I think I got it now. It's going to be a whole different challenge putting the base in the car, it looks so confusing! Hopefully it's not. Other things that are coming this week are the bassinet (that I might return for a different one), changing table pad, and some burp cloths.

My symptoms are still the same. Every day that goes by it gets harder to move. Sometimes I wonder how I'm going to do this for another 5-8 weeks haha. The real "countdown" for me starts May 1st. I will only have 22 days until I'm full term. Where did the time go?!

Here are some of the pictures of my baby girl <3
(The dark spots on her head that look like hair isn't hair, just a shadow)

Yay!

We ordered the crib mattress and stroller today. I'm so excited!

Birthplan

This is my birthplan as it is now. I'm not going to post another one if I change anything, I'll just edit it here. I'm pretty happy with it so far :)

ALSO: Jake and I are registered for our birth class on April 25th! It was full but I won't be able to attend the next scheduled one (hopefully she will be here!!) so they made room for us :)



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.


LABOR AUGMENTATION/INDUCTION

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 would like to have a standard epidural.


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 Jake present at all times if the baby requires a Cesarean delivery.
I would like the baby given to Jake as soon as she's dried (as long as she's in good health)


EPISIOTOMY

I would appreciate guidance in when to push and when to stop pushing so the perineum can stretch.
I would prefer an episiotomy rather than a tear.


DELIVERY

I would like Jake and nurses to support me and my legs as necessary during the pushing stage.
I would like to have the baby placed on my stomach/chest immediately after delivery.


IMMEDIATELY AFTER DELIVERY

I would like to have Jake cut the cord (only if he would like to).
I would like to have the baby evaluated and bathed in my presence.
If the baby must be taken from me to receive medical treatment, Jake will accompany the baby at all times.


POSTPARTUM

I would like a private room, if available.
I wish to have a cot provided for Jake.
Unless required for health reasons, I do not wish to be separated from my baby until I'm comfortable with it.
I would like the baby with me during the day but in the nursery at night, but brought to me for breastfeeding (subject to change).


BREASTFEEDING

I plan to breastfeed the baby and would like to begin nursing very shortly after birth.
I would like more information about breastfeeding.
I would like to meet with a Lactation Consultant.


PHOTO/VIDEO

I would like pictures and/or video to be taken immediately after birth, starting with the cord cutting.


OTHER

My support person is Jake and I would like him to be present during labor and delivery.
Visitors are welcomed during early labor stages (subject to change depending on how I feel) but must be asked to leave during the birth.
I would prefer that no students, interns, residents or non-essential personnel be present during my labor or the birth.
I would like at least 30-60 minutes alone with my baby and Jake before inviting visitors into the room (subject to change).

30 weeks

I had my doctors appointment yesterday, everything went well. I actually saw my doctors npc since she was out of the office. I've gained 19-20 pounds and my BP was good. Everything is great with my little peanut too! She did flip so she's head down now (yay!) Her heartrate was in the 130s and my fundal measurement was 32cm. Maybe she will come early! Or maybe she just measured a little differently than my doctor... it was right on track 2 weeks ago when I saw her haha.

I got the 2009 labor class schedule so I'm going to try to get into the April 25th class. If I can't get into that one (due to waiting lists) I might have to do the 5 week course and miss the last class (scheduled for June 2, I'm HOPING she will be here by then). I'm going to call today and register.

Symptoms are still the same. Cramping in my legs/butt when I sleep on my sides bruising feeling on my pubic bone (mostly bothers me while I'm in bed and try to move). I've been getting really hot lately and I've thrown up three times! Once was due to stress but the other two happened after the heatwaves. Most of the time I feel great and just look forward to her arrival.

I'm going to post my birthplan. I realize when you have a baby everything probably won't happen exactly how you would like it to but I have simple wants and requests that I would like followed as long as the baby is healthy and everything goes smoothly.

It's hard to believe that she will be here in 9 1/2 weeks, or less! 66 days until my due date and 45 until I'm full term. I'm REALLY hoping she will come around 38 weeks. I'm going to be asking my doctor about a membrane sweep. I'm not sure if she will do one early or if she's one of those doctors that wait until I'm 40 weeks or more. Hopefully I can get one done around 38 weeks and have her at the end of May <3 Maybe I'm wishful thinking... who knows?

Last update before the big 3-0!

Really quick update. I don't think she is breeched anymore. Last night I felt my first kick (I'm assuming) to my ribs. Today I felt a couple more and when I lean over it feels like she is IN the right side of my ribs! I feel bruised... haha!

29 weeks

Symptoms for this week... I still have trouble sleeping/rolling over at night. My legs cramp up really bad at night now which makes me have to roll over. Rolling is hard and it hurts! I always lean on Jake for support haha. I still feel some bruising and don't know if it's from kicking or just from pressure because she doesn't kick alot, she's more of a roller. I also get a bad "acid" feeling in my chest when I lay down. It doesn't burn really bad like heartburn so maybe it's acid reflux? I can feel her alot better and I'm starting to be able to tell where some of her body parts are (I think, I could be very wrong). I'm about 99% sure she is still breeched. This little girl just does not like to be upside down! haha. I have really weird dreams about her too. Last night I dreampt that she was 8 lbs even at birth but she was HUGE! She had a full set of teeth and had my eyes and hair. It was really hard to pick her up too. I would get pains in my pubic bone area and almost fall over. I don't know if dreams mean anything while pregnant but I hope not. I think I'm overly worried about having a big baby. Oh well though, she will be what she is and that's nothing less of perfect <3

I dropped food the other day and it landed on my belly. I thought it was really funny. I think I've bumped a couple things and Jake has run into my belly once too. It's kinda cute :)

The new letters for her wall haven't come in the mail yet and I doubt they are going to come today because it's really icy and snowing pretty bad. I thought this was supposed to be the beginning of spring?

I went to my cousins baby shower on Saturday. It was so much fun, I can't wait to have mine! I think they are planning to have mine at the end of April. I'll update on that as it gets closer though.

3d Pictures

The letters for her wall came today. I'm a little disappointed because I have to send them back due to some discoloration that I don't want to deal with. I'm a little bit of a perfectionist... I don't think that's a bad thing though, I just want everything to look nice. I also got a diaper genie which I'm really excited about. Jake broke the one we got yesterday so we had to return it and get a new one. He didn't break this one haha.

I was in my moms office today playing with her. I love it when she reacts to me pushing on my belly. She moves around and makes it do the wave haha.

Here are some of the 3d pictures of my baby girl <3

28 weeks

I didn't update on week 27 so here's a little recap. Jake and I went to Missouri the 13th through the 17th to visit his family and friends. The ride was a little brutal but we did it in 2 days so it was ok. His moms birthday was the 14th, she had a surprise party which was fun. Jakes family and one of his friends gave the baby a bunch of stuff! I loved seeing everything and going through all the clothes. We are really appreciative of everything they gave us.

My dad finished painting her room and hung the border while we were in Missouri. It looks amazing! I was so excited when I got home! The crib and changing table came in so my dad put those together for us when we got home also. Her nursery is coming along beautifully. I ordered letters for her wall to spell her name. They will be here on Wednesday. We only have a few more finishing touches to put on her room and it will be perfect <3 Pictures will come soon.

I finally uploaded some of the 3d pictures from my 26 week ultrasound. I will post them on here when I get home tonight. In 2 weeks we go in for our last 3d/4d ultrasound before she is born. It's so hard to believe that she will be here in 11 weeks... we can't wait for her!

So far week 28 is going really good. She is still breeched and still kicking away at my bladder haha.

I went to the doctor today and had my glucose test done for gestational diabetes. I had 5 minutes to drink what looked and tasted like crush orange soda and then had to wait an hour for my blood to be drawn. I saw my doctor while I waited. I have gained 19 pounds! The baby's heart rate is in the 130s and my fundal measurement is 29cm, right on track. I told her that I've been having some pretty bad pains right under my ribs but it doesn't seem to be pregnancy related and should be ok. I had to have a shot (in the butt!) since I have a negative blood type and Jakes blood type is unknown. I believe it's called Rhogam and it basically blocks the creation of antibodies that would harm any future pregnancy, and possibly this one if my baby is Rh positive. It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. I'll look at the sheet and write anything I missed about it when I upload the pictures. After the shot I went back to the lab to have my blood drawn. I had 3 viles and 2 tests done. I do not have gestational diabetes. The other test was for my hemoglobin and everything looked good with that too. I see the doctor every 2 weeks now. Time is flying!

Nursery

I ordered her crib! I didn't like the one I had originally picked so I went with a different one. It's beautiful, I love it so much. I need to find the dresser that goes with it. Babies R Us didn't have it online so I got the changing table instead but I'm going to keep looking. I'll use the changing table as a basket holder when I find it. Hopefully they will have it at the actual store, that would be perfect.

We got the paint and started painting her nursery. I matched up the green wrong so I have to repaint all the green in her room. It's WAY too dark. I'm using a pastel pink and green, it didn't turn out pastel haha. The pink is really nice though. I'm a little nervous that I matched that up wrong too and it won't look good with the green once I get it corrected... we'll see. There's always time to change it if need be. Her nursery is going to be so pretty when it's done. It will be perfect <3

That's all for now, I'm going to make cinnamon rolls and get new paint.



EDIT: My mom got the new paint. It looks amazing! I can't wait to finish it. Also, her crib and changing table have shipped <3

Update

The ultrasound went great! The only downfall was the face that she's breeched and the tech told us when that happens it can be hard to get good pictures and it can look like the baby has a bronze film over her face. We still got good ones (thank God!) and we are still going back again at 30 weeks for our final 3d before she is born!

When we first started, she had her hand over her mouth but she moved it when I rolled on my side. She likes to suck her fingers and she yawned a bunch! My little princess must have been tired haha. She is so adorable. We love her so much!

I still need to get them uploaded. When they are on the computer I'll post them here and on facebook.

After the ultrasound we did my baby registry at Babies R Us. Jake didn't go but I had alot of fun. They gave me a free Born Free bottle so that was cool since that's the brand we are using. My mom bought us bedding and we looked at cribs, changing tables, and dressers. I have to decide which crib I want for sure and then we can get it. We'll be ordering it today so I'm really excited. We are going to get paint supplies for her room today too. I can't wait to get going on her paint! Hopefully we can finish it by this weekend so Jake can set her crib up as soon as it gets here. We have almost everything we need for her nursery, shouldn't be long now.

26 weeks

Today I am 26 weeks pregnant! I feel like just yesterday I was saying I was almost 20. Only 14 weeks left to go and only 11 weeks before I'm considered full term. Wow, that makes me a little nervous! I'm not nervous about being a mom, I know I'm going to be a great mom. I'm nervous about the labor and delivery. I think every first time mom is. It's only natural to be scared, right?

We are going to the Twin Cities today and have a 3d/4d ultrasound tomorrow. I'm bringing my computer but I'm not going to upload any of her pictures until I get back because I don't want to do a mobile upload. I'm really excited. I know I've been talking about it for awhile now but I just can't help it! I'm going to see my daughters face... I bet I'm going to cry.

My Babies R Us registry will get done this weekend too. I think I've chosen the bedding I want. I want to look at everything they have to make sure but I'm pretty sure. It's a ladybug theme and super cute! I saw it at the store the other day and fell in even more love with it haha. It's sooo soft and cuddley. If we go with that one I know exatly what I want to do with her nusery. Who knows, I could find something I like more when I get down to the store and look at everything... probably not but we'll see!

I'm feeling really good over all with the exception of some pain still. I think it's going away though. That, or I'm getting used to living with it everyday. No weird cravings or anything like that this week.

We got a dresser and nightstand for our bedroom. I'm glad we finally found one. It took awhile to find one that I liked and one that would fit nicely in our bedroom. I really like the way it looks now. We also bought a living room set but it won't be delivered until the 23rd or so. I hope it comes sooner, it's a drag not having anywhere to sit but our table or bed. All we need now (other than the baby's room) is a TV and entertainment center. And of course, wall hangings.

I'll post the pics on Sunday or Monday, whenever we can get them uploaded. I don't know how to work the scanner so my mom does it for me and her scanner was acting up with the last ultrasound pictures... I'll get then up one way or another.
PLEASE baby girl, be good this time!!

25 weeks

At 25 weeks pregnant she measures about 13 1/2 inches from head to toe. She is about a pound and a half.

I've been having bad bruising pains in my pubic bone area and parts of my legs. I know the pain in my legs is probably from doing too much with the moving (which isn't very much anyway) and I heard that the pubic bone pain is internal bruising from the baby sitting/kicking low. I've had it for a little over a week now. I hope this isn't something that stays until she is born, it hurts! At least she's still moving around and letting me know she's ok, so it's worth it.

We finally moved into our new place. I love it! We stayed the night for the first time last night but don't have screens or blinds put up on any of our windows yet (they still have to clean the windows so they didn't go up before we signed the lease)... it was interesting waking up this morning to the sun, haha. They are coming Monday or Tuesday to finish up the place. We brought all the baby's stuff over and Jake put her boppy chair together... I have to say, I thought it was so cute to watch <3
We are going furniture shopping today. Hopefully we can get our living room put together for anything under a fortune haha. Our place is coming together really nice, I'm excited for the baby stuff!

We switched the date of our 3d/4d ultrasound to the 7th. I know this time we will come back with cute little pictures of her. We also resceduled my late scan to April 4th so I will be 3o weeks instead of 28. I want a little more time in between appointments so she looks a little different in her pictures. I can't wait to go!

That's really all for now. Nothing else too major really going on at the moment.
<3

Daddy felt baby!!

Yay! I'm so excited! She started kicking really hard at 12:30pm (yes, we were still in bed haha) I grabbed Jake's hand and put it on my belly. HE FELT HER!!! I couldn't be more happy <3

My belly moves quite a bit now when she kicks. I noticed the first big movements last night and I thought it was kind of funny. I love her so much.

24 weeks

Just when I thought I was getting better I got sick again. I'm not really sure with what though. I threw up first thing when I woke up yesterday morning and then 4 more times throught the day. I don't know if it was pregnancy related or if I had a short stint of the flu. I also had the worst pressure in my lower abdomen. I'm feeling much better today so thank God for that!

I'm not so much craving food as I'm craving juice and sprite (not together lol). I've craved juice more than anything throught my whole pregnancy so far. A new(er) craving I have is for popsicles. I'd eat them all day if I could. It's probably the fruit thing... I think that's all I've been craving so far this week.

The baby sits low in my belly alot. Most of the time I feel her kick/move right above my pubic bone. She does move around and kick other places but's it's painful sometimes when she's so low so it sticks out in my mind the most. Jake still hasn't felt her kick... He tries to feel it but she always stops when he puts his hand on my stomach. I know he really wants to feel her but I don't think he's giving it enough time. It will happen soon.

We are for sure (10000%) moving next week. I wish the leaser would have called us back and let us sign yesterday but that didn't happen. I'm pretty pissed about it but oh well, nothing I can do. Hopefully first thing Monday morning she will call. I feel like we have been calling her so much but she needs to get on this so we can move out! I'm anxious and excited to be off on my own with Jake. Plus, I'm sick of looking at the baby's clothes in bins! I want to hang them in her closet! Sometimes it feels so surreal that I'm a mom... wow...

We made my free 3d/4d ultrasound for next Saturday (the 28th). I'm so happy he is letting us come back to get pictures of her face for free. I hope she is good this time!!

23 weeks

I have been sick since Sunday, which sucks. I'm just now starting to feel better and kick the bug. I got a little nervous because I wasn't feeling the baby move like she did before I was sick so I went into the doctor yesterday to make sure she was fine. She of course was, with a heartbeat of 166. They pushed my next appointment with my OB back another 4 weeks since I saw the CNP yesterday. I'll be 28 weeks at that appointment. Time feels like it's flying right now.

Valentine's day was last Saturday and on my card from Jake (among my other presents from him <3) he wrote "Love, Jake and Audrey!" I thought that was adorable that he thought of her too. She also got a 1st Valentine's Day card from my parents with $2 in it. I thought that was cute. We'll have to get her a piggy bank now!

We are still waiting to sign the lease. The last of the paperwork got done today so now it's a waiting game to hear back from the leaser. I wish she would hurry up, I would have loved to be in there by this weekend.

Everything else is going great, still can't wait to meet you little girl!

22 weeks

22 weeks already! I feel like time is flying right now. Everything is going into place. Jake and I will be moving soon so we're really excited for that. I wanna get the move over with before I feel too exhausted to do any of the unpacking. We should hear back if we got the apartment or not today or tomorrow... fingers crossed.

We still have to decide on what furniture we want for the nursery. My parents are gifting it to us but I can't decide between white and cherry finish. Maybe I'll pick the bedding first, I have no idea. I do know that I want a sleigh crib and we will have a dresser/changer combo with a hutch. Maybe another 4 drawer dresser too, I'm not sure yet. Making the nursery is going to be one of my favorite parts of getting ready for her. I can't wait.

We don't go back to see my OB until March 9th. I'm supposed to go every 4 weeks but she won't be there 4 weeks from my last appointment so they stretched it out a little longer. I'll be 26 weeks. It seems like so far away. Oh well I guess...

She has been moving around alot. I don't think she likes when I set my laptop on my belly. It feels like she's doing karate in there every time I do haha. I'm starting to feel big. Things that were easy for me to do pre pregnancy are getting harder and taking more energy out of me. I haven't been sick at all which is nice. I think being winded alot and having no energy are my only symptoms this week.

I think that's about it for now. I can't wait to meet you little girl <3

Level II ultrasound

Since I had an irregular screening for trisomy 18 and 13 we had to get another level II ultrasound with the geneticist today. We weren't that worrid about anything being wrong this time because we were put at a less than 1% chance at our 16 week level II. We went in and the tech measured what felt like every bone in her body. It was a little drawn out because I was getting really uncomfortable and we weren't seeing the cute traditional ultrasound pictures, it was zoomed in on her head, heart, bones, etc. The doctor was really nice today. At my 16 week ultrasound with her she was pretty uptight and stern. When she came in she was trying to get the baby to move by pressing the wand into my belly. The baby ended up kicking herself in the arm, which was cute. We got some pictures of her and were told that she weighs a pound now! She's breeched but that's not a problem since I'm not close to my due date yet. I'm sure she moves around alot. I'm surprised she wasn't head down like she always is. Anyway, everything looked great with her. Thank God!

I had an appointment with my OBs CNP after that. All went well. The baby's heartbeat went from 153 at the ultrasound to 155 with the dopler so that's good. She told me that I should gain between 25 and 30 pounds! I wanted to die. That seems like so much weight. I would do anything for my daughter so it's of course worth it but I'm not looking forward to it.

21 weeks

I didn't update last week! Oh well. Anyway I'm 21 weeks & 3 days pregnant today :)

Last week we went for our first 4d ultrasound to find out the sex. We actually already knew what it was but I wanted confirmation because my doctors office told me that their "guess" was that it's a girl at my 16 week, level II ultrasound (I'll explain later) and I didn't want to wait until Feb. 4th to make sure. Not to mention Jake kept saying "it's a guy" to be funny and I was reading about people who were told it was one gender at their ultrasounds and it came out the opposite. Anyway, it was really exciting. I went in thinking she will show us her little face and I'll get cute pictures of her... I was wrong. She didn't want to cooperate at all! She was head down and when I moved in weird positions to get her to move she just rolled with me. Needless to say her gender was all we got out of it. It was kind of disappointing but we got alot of free stuff and he told us to come back in a few weeks for a free ultrasound so we can get pictures of her face! I already have a 28 week 4d scheduled so it was really cool that he offered us another one to see her earlier.

We stayed the weekend instead of coming back Saturday and did alot of shopping. Our little girl made a haul, mostly things from Babies R Us and Nordstrom. We talked about my baby registery. I really want to register at Babies R Us and Pottery Barn Kids but we don't have either of those stores in Duluth. We decided we're going to register at Babies R Us anyway (since I have family that has that store where they live, including Jakes family) and Target. It's easier to pick up the things we want from Pottery Barn Kids on our own so that's what we are going to do.

I got a book called Nursery Style. I'm going to start paging through it since we (more like I) decided she's going to have a decked out nursery. Jake of course agreed to do the painting and help out with whatever I need him to do. I'm really excited to start picking her nursery theme. I feel like I'm so behind. We have so much to do, including move before she gets here. I'm starting to feel stressed.

Everything has been really good with me symptom wise. I'm feeling great and I'm getting so excited to meet her in person!

Really quick

I feel like a little kid on Christmas Eve. It's 3am and I'm wide awake! I'm so excited to see our baby for the first time in 4d! We are leaving at 10am and the appointment is at 4pm. It's a 2 1/2 hour drive to the Twin Cities from my house. When we get there we are going to check into the hotel and then have lunch with my brother, his wife, and my nephew. I don't even know why I updated but I can't sleep and I don't have anything better to do.

I guess that's all I really had to say, I can't wait to see you my lovely baby!

Going to the Twin Cities...

Tomorrow for our first 3d/4d ultrasound! Finally! We are so excited. I'll update and post pictures when we get home on Saturday :]

By the way, I'm officially half way tomorrow <3

19 weeks

We went to the doctor today. I have never waited so long for an appointment in my life. We waited almost an hour! It was a quick appointment where they do the usual stuff (weight, BP, ask how I'm doing, ask if I can feel the baby move, and listen to the heartbeat). It took her a minute to find the heartbeat which kind of scared me but I knew I felt the baby move a few minutes before that so I guess I worried for nothing. She didn't give me an exact number but told me the heartbeat was in the 140/150 range and was good. It's so nice hearing my baby's heartbeat <3

I can feel the baby kick without putting my hand on my stomach now. It started last night when I had my laptop on my belly. I'm not sure if baby could feel it but I clearly felt a kick right where it was sitting. I put my hand on my belly and felt another one :) Now if only they happened more often and Jake could feel. I know I said that I felt kicks before but those were only with my hand, I couldn't actually feel them without pushing on my belly. Yay, my peanut is getting more active in there.

No sickness this week. I got a little nauseated at the appointment this morning but other than that everything is great. I have gained about 10 pounds! That's a good weight gain for almost 20 weeks but I feel like I've gotten so fat. It's not fun gaining weight but it's for the baby so as long as I'm healthy I'm ok with it.

18 weeks... braxton hicks?!

Last night while I was getting ready to go to bed I got this horrible burning sensation in my stomach, almost a heartburn feeling. It bothered me so much that I threw up my dinner :[ As if that wasn't bad enough a few minutes later I started having CONTRACTIONS! Not just little tightening of the stomach contractions, HARD contractions. They hurt so bad I almost couldn't walk back to my bedroom. They were coming every few minutes and were probably one of the strongest pains I have ever felt. I layed down on my left side and that seemed to help them stop after what felt like forever. In reality it was probably about 15-20 minutes. It was aweful. I told Jake I don't mind having painful contractions when it's time to give birth to our child but at 18 weeks that just sucks. I still love you baby <3 haha.

I'm really unprepared when it comes to contractions. Being a first time mom it's hard to tell if that's what they were or not... blah. I can't imagine what else that pain could have been though. I read that I shouldn't be having any painful contractions this early in pregnancy. I guess we'll see what the doctor says :/ The thought that I could have been going into early labor and would have lost my child scared me to death. Thank God they stopped and it was nothing serious, I hope.

On a better note, I felt the baby move a few times today. I'm pretty sure I felt another kick when I put my hand on my belly too! I can't wait until they are more timed and Jake can feel it too. I love being a mom and I love our little family of 3. I couldn't have asked for a better man to have this miracle happen with. I love you Jake.

Recap!

I'm already 18 weeks pregnant! The time is going by so fast. I've finally decided to start my blog so for the next 22 weeks I will be updating about my baby and pregnant life in general.

To recap the past 18 weeks... Jake and I found out we are expecting on September 28, 2008. What a night that was! Little did I know that our lives were about to change in a matter of minutes. I was honestly expecting to read "not pregnant." The moment I read "pregnant" I couldn't quite believe what I was looking at. Mommyhood had began. I was excited and nervous all at the same time. We had wanted a baby, we just weren't sure when it was going to happen. It finally did.

From about week 6 through week 12 I was really sick. The baby of course made it all worth it but it was definitely not fun. I didn't like not being able to feel the baby and not feeling pregnant in general. I just couldn't wait to feel and interact with my unborn child. Things have changed since then. I can't feel kicks yet but I can feel movement. Baby moves quite a bit during the day and I could swear I felt one kick the other night when I was talking about baby names with Jake and my mom. I was laughing so hard at something that was said and put my hand on my belly. It was quick and I only felt it on one finger but I'm sure it was a kick. I haven't felt anything like that since. I wish Jake could have felt it :(

I have had a few ultrasounds (four to be exact) and one scare with a screening test. However, everything looks great and baby is looking healthy and perfect ♥

Here are some of our ultrasound pictures :)

6 weeks

11 weeks

16 weeks