Kylie's Birthday

Since my last post I had been becoming more and more uncomfortable every day. I developed insomnia and really wasn't sleeping at all anymore and still going to work every day. I was miserable. I called in sick to work on Monday and called my mom crying and told her that I was seriously considering starting my maternity leave early because it was just getting too hard to function. I really wanted too work up until my due date because if I went out early that means I would have to go back to work early. I took a nap and told myself I would take it day by day and just try to stick it out a little bit longer. Little did I know Kylie had other plans for me.

Wednesday I woke up around 2:00am with contractions. These felt different than the contractions I had been having so I immediately wondered if something could be starting. The contractions were coming about every 10 minutes, and were not really painful, but much more so than before. I could not go back to sleep, so I just kept monitoring them to see if they would get any closer together. Five minutes apart was what I was waiting for. Jason got up around 3:30 for work and I told him what was going on. The contractions were still coming every 10 minutes so I told him to just go to work and I'd call him if anything happened.

By around 5:00 I realized the contractions were getting a lot stronger. Some of them were pretty painful. I called Jason and told him I was going to really time them to make sure this was the real thing and I'd call him in an hour. During that hour or so the contractions were coming every 7-8 minutes and every once in a while I would get one that hurt so bad I would have to get out of bed and move around. I called Jason and told him I was ready to go to the hospital. I wasn't waiting for the whole five minute rule. So I got out of bed and, wait for it....packed my bag. Yea, i wasn't prepared AT ALL. Well, at least I bought the stuff I needed last week. By the time Jason got home the contractions were about 6-7 minutes apart so we were on our way!

We got to the hospital maybe around 7:30 and they took us up to labor check and hooked me up to the monitors. The contractions we still about 6 minutes apart but when they did an internal I was almost 5 centimeters dilated! They asked me what time my water broke and I was like "What? My water broke?" I knew I was leaking a little bit after the contractions, but I honestly thought that it was maybe urine or regular discharge since I always imagined a huge gush when the water broke. Apparently this happened at home around the time the contractions went from 10 minutes to 7 and got much more intense. The nurse started giving me all the paperwork to fill out to admit me and when Jason asked her if there was still a chance they could send me home she was like, "We aren't sending you home without a baby!"

They moved us into our labor and delivery room, drew my blood and we waited. The contractions were getting much more intense but I had to wait for my blood work to get back to get the epidural. I felt a really strong one and threw up afterwords. Luckily, the anesthesiologist walked in right after that. I sat as still as possible. I felt the prick of the local anesthesia, and then not much else. The epidural worked wonders and I felt no pain once it kicked in. They started me on a little bit of pitocin to speed up the process. My mom and Jason's mom were here by now so we all just waited, and waited, and waited. Maybe two or three hours later they came to check me and I was fully dilated! I couldn't believe it. They wanted me to labor a little bit more to let the baby come down a little further on her own, so we just waited some more. Maybe another two hours later they came and checked me and decided it was time to push. I didn't feel any pain at all up until about the last hour or less of labor when I starting feeling a lot of pressure and a little bit of pain.

We kicked every one out of the room and the doctor came in and got us all set up. I could feel the contractions and just pushed as hard as I could when I felt one. My doctor was the best. She kept everything lighthearted the whole time. Jason was interested in everything she was doing and she took the time to explain everything to him. After about 20 minutes of pushing, Kylie was born at 3:41pm. I was exhausted and overwhelmed and Jason had tears in his eyes I just couldn't believe how beautiful the moment was even though it is kind of a blur for me. Jason cut the cord and they took Kylie to clean her up. I just soaked up the moment, watching Jason fall instantly in love with his daughter, it still brings tears to my eyes. It's true when they say a single moment can change your life.

We Welcome With Love

Kylie Marie
Born March 24, 2010 at 3:41pm. She weighed 6 pounds 15 ounces and was 20 inches long. We are in love! Birth story and more pictures to come.

37 Weeks

We are FULL TERM! Kylie is now fully developed and could realistically be born any time now! She is in position and low and I am still having a lot of cramping and contractions. I have been monitoring them but so far nothing that is time able at all. I am slowly progressing though. At my appointment on Thursday I was 1 1/2 centimeters dilated so if I have to be uncomfortable, and least its working. And I am definitely uncomfortable. My hips hurt when I try to sleep, TRY being the key word since I really don't sleep anymore. My pelvis hurts like I took a week long spinning class. And the newest ailment is nerve pain that shoots down the right butt cheek through the leg, particularly when I sit down on the toilet. Nice. I went out and bought the rest of the things I needed for my hospital bag and for at home postpartum so now I just have to pack it all up and have it waiting. All of Kylie's clothes from newborn to 3 months are washed and now I'm working on the sheets, blankets towels, and everything else. Jason installed the car seat in his car and we put together the stroller. And I just need to make one more trip to Babies R Us to pick up a few things that we still need and then we will be all ready. I'm still working, somehow, and I wish I wasn't but there's nothing I can do about it. Just counting down the days till baby!

Weekly Update: Your baby is now considered "full term," even though your due date is three weeks away. If you go into labor now, her lungs will likely be mature enough to fully adjust to life outside the womb. Your baby weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel. Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long. But don't be surprised if your baby's hair isn't the same color as yours. Dark-haired couples are sometimes thrown for a loop when their children come out as blonds or redheads, and fair-haired couples have been surprised by Elvis look-alikes. And then, of course, some babies sport only peach fuzz.

And then there was one...

I'm the last standing prego! Carli and Gil welcomed their baby girl Sadie James into the world today! Since Carli and I really went through our entire pregnancies together, it's really starting to sink in that this baby is coming sooner rather than later. Sadie is beautiful and I can't wait to hear all about labor from Carli. I told her to lie and tell me it wasn't so bad :) Happy Birthday Sadie!!

36 Weeks

We are getting sooooo close! I really can't believe how fast this whole pregnancy has gone by and really any day now we could be meeting our baby girl. Sleeping is still terrible. I am really having a hard time functioning at work and find myself taking a power nap on almost every break I get. The other night I kept waking up not because I had to pee but because whichever hip I was laying on would start hurting really bad. I'd flip over to the other side and then that hip would hurt. This went on all night. My Braxton Hicks contractions are most definitely getting stronger and starting to last a little bit longer. I was checked this week at my appointment and really no progress yet, still pretty closed up but a fingertip dilated. I'm hoping for a little more next week. I think Kylie is a little bit lower. My ribs feel much better but I still get out of breath by really just doing normal things. My belly feels like it really can't get any bigger than it is. My once tiny 25 inch waist is now measuring 37 inches around. I think it is still a little small for how far along I am but all is good with the baby's growth and that's all that matters. Kylie totally sticks her feet out the side of my belly. When I press down I can actually feel her body parts which is really amazing and Jason got to feel her hiccuping the other day and he thought that was really cool. Oh and everyone is telling me lately that my belly is lopsided because she likes to hang out on the left side only. LOL Pretty much everything is ready now, we are just waiting on her!

Weekly Update: Your baby is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. She now weighs almost 6 pounds and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. She's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Your baby swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, resulting in a blackish mixture, called meconium, will form the contents of her first bowel movement.

35 Weeks

This week we worked really hard on Kylie's nursery. The painting is finally done, all the furniture is back in its place, and most of the decorations are up. I would say it is about 75% complete now! Jason needs to hang up the curtains and then I have to get everything washed and organized and then it should be all ready for her. I will take pics soon I promise.

I'm feeling big and mostly uncomfortable still. I'm really starting to wonder how I am going to work all the way until I go into labor because I am already exhausted and having a hard time functioning. Nothing really new to talk about but I think she may have dropped just a little bit lower because she has been mostly sparing my ribs lately and I'm feeling more a more pressure on the pelvis. I've also starting having dreams about being in labor. Hopefully we are slowly making some progress!

Weekly Update: Your baby doesn't have much room to maneuver now that she's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds (pick up a honeydew melon). Because it's so snug in your womb, she isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times she kicks should remain about the same. Her kidneys are fully developed now, and her liver can process some waste products. Most of her basic physical development is now complete — she'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.

Dr Appt & Lots of Answers

I had an appt today and had a ton of questions that I wanted to ask and I got them all answered!

* I have been having a lot of Braxton Hicks and also some very mild period like cramping recently. Dr says this is GOOD! My body is preparing itself for labor. I have two more weeks to go before I am full term so he said if I'm getting more than 6 Braxton Hicks in an hour that don't stop with water and rest I should head over to labor and delivery. Also, if I'm having cramps that become increasingly more painful and are timeable, coming about every 3 minutes, or of course if my water breaks I'm probably in labor.

*If in fact I do go into labor early, at this point they will not try to stop it. He says that at this point babies will generally do better if they are just born rather than try to stop the labor and keep them inside.

*If I NEVER go into labor on my own, he will not let me go longer than 41 weeks. He is not a fan of inducing unless medically necessary (me either) and would rather give me the baby the chance to come when she's ready. They will not induce earlier than 39 weeks and not until there is some labor progress already. He said what would happen is if I make it to 40 weeks, at that appointment they will have me pick a day for the following week that is convenient and schedule the induction. Let's hope we don't have to worry about this.

*The baby can start dropping anytime now, but she is already low so I might not really notice it that much. I'm hoping this happens soon and I do notice the difference and my ribs get some relief.

*Baby is also in the proper position, and he says it is very unlikely that she will change positions at this point, although it could happen.

*We talked breastfeeding. He recommended waiting a few weeks to pump in order to get a good supply established, and said there is a lactation consultant in the office if I have any questions.

*We also talked birth control, since I'm not trying to have an "oops" baby right away after she is born. I'm probably going to try the Mirena IUD and see how that goes.

I think that was it! I'm so happy I got to have all my questions answered. From here on out I will be having weekly appointments and internal exams start at 37 weeks to check for labor progress. I'm really hoping Kylie takes after her Daddy. He believes being on time means showing up 15 minutes EARLY!!!! 35 weeks pregnant and 35 days left to go!

Happy Birthday!

I want to say a huge congrats to my friends Jackie and Brian who welcomed their twin boys into the world today! I can't wait to meet them and especially for all the future play dates we can have together. I'm so happy for you guys (and a little jealous you aren't pregnant anymore.) Happy Birthday Gabriel and Giovanni!!!