39 Weeks and Counting Down

So, the countdown is on.  Adam is snuggling up and keeping warm inside my belly, which is cramping and contracting at a regularly irregular pace. ha!  My appointment this week was originally scheduled for Wednesday, but Monday night I had some pretty intense and regular contractions so by Tuesday morning I decided to call the doctor and move my appointment.  I saw a nurse practitioner Tuesday morning and she gave me some discouraging news.  After a week of contractions I am still only 3 centimeters dilated, and have effaced to 60%.  I mentioned to her wanting to discuss induction if I haven't had him by my due date, and she said the doctors wouldn't even consider talking to me about that until I was exactly 39 weeks... which was the VERY next day.  

So, my next appointment is scheduled on my due date, September 11th.  So we shall see if I have my sweet baby boy in the next few days, or if he will be a late baby.  Johnathan predicts since he is a Kemp, he will probably be late. So true, although Anna Rae came right on time!

As for how I'm feeling... other than getting pretty annoyed by the comments I get at work, "shouldn't you have already had that baby," and "my god you are huge, you need to just have that baby." etc. etc. I'm doing pretty good.  I'm still working full time, and trying to cram getting some priority deadlines done.  My lower back is KILLING me, but I'm still trying to get in walks every evening and relaxing baths at night really help.  Some days I have a ton of contractions and get a little excited, but then other days, like today, I hardly have any and am feeling great.  I better stop complaining and soak these good days up right!

Sweet Adam, we are so excited, anxious, and can't wait to meet you!!! Any day now... we are ready! :)

 

38 week stats!

I had a great doctor's appointment yesterday!  At now 38 weeks here are my stats:

3cm dilated

50% effaced

Baby's head is very low

They did not estimate baby's weight

Contractions are getting more consistent and stronger 

Back pain is getting worse; mainly when walking

I'm feeling great (besides the usual back back and contractions), but tired, and SO ready to meet my little man!  Johnathan and I discussed a plan of action last night if I go into labor at home, and what we would do if I went into labor while we were at work.  His biggest concern was what to do if my water breaks... haul ass to the hospital, or would he have time to come home and shower before making his way to the hospital.  I didn't really know how to answer that question, other than we would play it by my pain level.  If my water breaks and I'm not in a terrible amount of pain then we don't have to speed, but should get to the hospital soon.  Any other concerns, like if my contractions get consistent and closer together I decided I would call the on call doctor and consult with him/her before jumping in the car to the hospital.  Hopefully this plan will work out.  And on that note, we better put the car seat in the car... just in case!

On Sunday my sister took some fabulous belly pics for us!  Looking back, we took pictures at the same time with Anna Rae, and I think I looked pretty much the same... here are some of my favorites.

Full Term Winter Melon

I have never seen a winter melon, but imagine it's something like a watermelon because that's about what my stomach looks like! ha!  Adam is still kicking away, but his movements have become a little more painful as he does all he can do to stretch out with the tiny amount of space left in his cozy little temporary home.  And speaking of his home, I don't think I have blogged about his "nursery."  Since we are now living in my parent's rental house with only two bedrooms, little Adam is shacking up with us.  We put the pack-n-play in a corner of our bedroom, and will keep him in there until he gets a little bigger.  Maybe sometime before the end of the year we will move the crib in there.  The crib takes up so much more room than the pack-n-play, which is why we opted for the first couple of months while he is so little to just keep him in there.  Hopefully this will work out nicely.    

At this week's doctors appointment everything went great.  Found out I am slowly making some progress... 1 centimeter dilated and 50% effaced!  I'm also battling a sinus infection, but was able to get some antibiotics and cough medicine from the doctor, so hopefully in the next couple days I will start feeling much better.

In sadder news... we sold Johnathan's truck.  It's a little bittersweet because everyone in the family had a little attachment to that great truck, but it was the best financial decision for us.  I promised him one day we will get a new bad ass truck for him, and his sacrifice will be so worth it in the end!  This all came about after Johnathan has been reading Dave Ramsey's book, The Total Money Makeover.  The book has some great ideas about saving, spending, and getting out of debt.  We want to be good role models for our children, and make sure we make the best financial decisions for both ourselves and their futures.  We are on the right track to build our beautiful dream home, and I can't wait to start! 

Here is a picture at 37 weeks!

 

Overdue Post

I promise, Adam, I'm not trying to be slack, but between getting ready for your arrival and work and keeping up with your sister, it's hard to find time to write about all the great things happening. 

My doctor's appointments have started to be weekly now, which means I'm in the final stretch!  Hopefully these appointments will start showing more progress than today's appointment.  At 36 weeks baby Adam is perfect size, and I'm a centimeter dilated, but not effaced at all.  Let's hope all these cramps and contractions are doing their job and we get to meet little Adam soon! 

During my appointment last week I was tested for group B strep, which I have again.  That just means I will have to be put on an IV when I deliver.  I can handle that, and had it with Anna Rae, so I was not surprised to hear I had it again. 

Lately cramps and exhaustion is keeping me down, but I'm still working and still running around after a 2 year old!  I try to take walks after work, but in this heat it's impossible.  I have started to learn to ask Johnathan to do more things around the house so that I can relax a little.  Saturday we went shopping in Raleigh for all things baby... we went to Babies R Us to get items we didn't get from our showers and we really racked up on some good deals, not to mention we had over $300 in gift cards to use! Thank you!!!  I opted to not get the tandem stroller and instead just got the ergo baby carrier.  I figured I would get much more use out of the carrier since we really don't use the stroller that much anymore.  Hopefully that was a good move.  I also invested in some good nursing bras.  Can you believe I never used them with Anna Rae, but this time I know better! 

Last Friday my office threw me a really sweet luncheon shower!  I got some great necessary gifts for Adam and we had a great time.  Now, I think I'm set, and ready for his arrival! 

Showered with Love

Last Sunday my sister along with some women of our church threw me a nautical themed baby shower for Adam.  We had a great time and received a ton of great gifts for little man.  Fortunately, I got a good variety of necessary items, like diapers and wipes, clothes, bathroom supplies and towels, etc.  After Sunday, while washing baby clothes and organizing everything I've decided that I'm ready for him to get here!  While I'm still a little anxious about how to care for two young children, I'm ready to figure out this new schedule with two, ready to embark on this journey with Johnathan, and ready to learn more than I ever thought I would. And most importantly, I'm ready to complete our little family.

Here are some pictures from the shower - and me at 32 weeks!

32 Week 3Ds!

Here is little Adam at 32 weeks... estimated 4.4 lbs, and according to Crystal, our ultrasound tech, his head is REALLY low, and he is in the perfect position for delivery! yay!

Here is Anna Rae at 32 weeks... Something tells me they are going to look just alike! :)

And here I am at 32 weeks!

The remainder of the doctor visit yesterday went pretty uneventful.  I did talk to the doctor about my crazy back labor contractions I had last Friday morning.  They came every 10 minutes for an hour straight, and were pretty painful.  I took a hot shower and ate some breakfast, and they eventually went away.  Thank goodness!  The doctor said he could contract all he wanted after 36 weeks! 

31 Weeks!

Here we are... counting down the weeks and days instead of months looking forward to meeting our precious little boy!  Recently I find myself coming to the realization I'm having a boy and freaking out a little.  I know at first it won't be much different from Anna Rae, but it seems I know nothing about "boy" stuff and I feel so unprepared.  I gravitate to girly items in a store, want to watch all the girly movies and shows on tv, and am partial to girl clothes.  Although I know Johnathan will make sure his son is "all boy," I want to be a part of that too.  The "boy" stuff I like is NASCAR, football, basketball, fishing, and a big truck... and that's about it.  But, then I started to think... Anna Rae plays in the dirt, just like a boy would, and probably gets just as dirty and loves it.  

In an online Q&A regarding this same matter, I read answers from mothers with boys.  Of course most of their advice was geared towards how to not get peed on, but in all honesty I could care less about the pee.  I read one that calmed my fears... "When he gets big enough for his boy-ness to matter, you will already be so intimately familiar with him, the person, that the rest will come naturally. Just be open to falling in love with your baby and discovering who he is."  I need to remember that I bonded the same with Anna Rae, and it wasn't just because I was a girl too, but as she developed a personality we developed a relationship, and it seems so natural now.  I know it will be the same with Adam.  

I'm also getting a little nervous about just caring for a newborn again.  I know some moms who think it will be easier the second time around because they've done it before, and in some respects I do feel that way.  But you also forget so easily... the labor and birth, the long nights and little sleep, breastfeeding fears, bouts of non stop crying and spitting up... and then there is a new element... potentially waking up Anna Rae in the middle of the night with his crying, so now we are having to comfort two children.  Oh, and I can't forget we have TWO dogs now, which in the grand scheme of things don't make much of a difference, but it all seems very overwhelming.  I'm sure all moms go through this, and now that I've written all this down I am even more glad that we haven't started building our house yet!  Ha! 

So there it is Adam.  My fears may seem overwhelming, but the thought of having you in our lives is such an unbelievable joy and a gift and I can't wait!  This is what life, and family, is all about!