I took this quiz today and I turned out to be Charlie Brown. I'm a little bummed at that... I was really hoping for Woodstock or Snoopy.

You are Charlie Brown!


Which Peanuts Character are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Here's a pic of me at 36 weeks pregnant. I guess it pretty much reflects my state of mind right now. The caption would be: "Please get this baby OUT!"

I just got back from my doctor’s appointment and here’s what we learned:

1) I am one centimeter dialated! Wahoo! Only 9 more excruciating centimeters to go!

2) She is not going to let me go until my due date. More good news! However, she wouldn’t give me any specifics as to when she might induce. She just said, usually they induce around 39 weeks, but because my bloodpressure situation will probably get worse, it might be earlier.

3) I’ve gained two pounds, which is a little unusual, she thought. Especially given all the puking I’ve been doing lately. So she thinks it’s all fluid, which is just MORE evidence that the pre-eclampsia is getting worse. Grr…

4) She wants me to quit work SOON. I have to go back on Monday to see her and she wants me to set a date THAT day, depending on how bad the pre-eclampsia has gotten.
Apparently, sitting at a desk all day is not as stress-free as I thought. She wants me at home where I can lay down on and off all day. Ugh.


5) We learned that, like most of the other females on my mom’s side of the family, my pelvis is really small. It’s not something you can tell from someone’s overall body size apparently.. (I really thought I had a good shot at not having inherited this little glitch) She expressed some very non-optimistic sentiments about the success I might have trying to give birth the "normal" way. Ugh ugh ugh! That’s the last thing I wanted to hear. :

So that’s all my news for today. Not particularly all good and not particularly all bad, I suppose…

I rode up in the elevator today with a very nice girl who works on the 6th floor of my building. She struck up a conversation in the usual way people do these days:
Girl:When are you due?
Me: March 25th but hopefully sooner This can’t last 4 more weeks.
Girl: You’d be surprised. I had a baby April 11th last year.
Me: Oh really? Did your pregnancy last 40 weeks?
Girl: Just about. She came 4 days early.
Me: Oh. That’s not very encouraging!

Then the door opened and the conversation came to an end…

Everywhere I turn there are people who tolerated this for 40 weeks or longer. No no no! This can’t go that long! I will explode or something, I’m sure of it! I think I might take a long walk at lunch today. At least then I’ll feel like I’m doing SOMEthing to create progress. My big exciting doctor’s appointment tomorrow will let me know if I’m having any success.

... and despite my exclaimations of the impossibility of my stomach stretching anymore, I continue to get larger. The tummy pouch on my pants gets tighter every day and my last few shirts are bursting at the seams. I am starting to feel like the girl from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory who blows up into a blueberry and they have roll her off to be juiced.

I have hope though. On Saturday, I went out with my friend Jen, who you may remember from some of my earlier posts. She had a baby 5-1/2 months ago and she's not only down to her original weight, but actually 15 pounds below it. Granted, at this point, she needs to gain a little... but that's an enviable situation, I gotta say. I'd be eating breakfast at IHOP and dinner at Macaroni Grill every other day if I had that problem. ;)

In an attempt to try to figure out how to stop throwing up, I've been making a list of all the things that seem to have triggered it lately: Enjoy... ;)

* Bagels
* Cafe Mochas from Panera (tried various combinations of milk/whipped cream)
* Any kind of pasta
* Pizza
* Ensure protein drinks
* Orange gatorade
* Raspberry Whole Fruit Popsicles
* Soup of any kind
* Water
* Greenbeans
* Anything sweet
* Ice cream, any flavor

And the list goes on...
see any pattern? I don't... :(

Apparently I have edema. This means my ankle bones have disappeared and I can mold my ankles and shins like Play-dough. I say it's really gross... here's what the medical stuff says about it.
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Edema
Well past the halfway point of pregnancy most expectant mothers look down at their feet and ankles and gasp at the sight of no anklebones! If a pregnancy has had to endure the summer months this revelation may appear sooner than the halfway mark. Adding insult to injury, it is usually with this discovery that you come to the realization that you need to move up a shoe size to relieve the discomfort of the swelling known as edema.
Edema results as a by product of the extra blood your body has acquired during your pregnancy. The growing uterus puts pressure on the pelvic veins and the vena cava (a large vein on the right side of the body that receives blood from the lower limbs). Circulation slows down and causes the blood to pool. Pressure is caused from trapped blood forcing water down into the tissues of the feet and ankles. The water is fluid that would normally be in the body, it has simply become displaced. In addition to this fluid displacement, at times pregnant women also retain excess water, which will add to the swelling.
The description of how edema occurs sounds scary but it is quite common and normal during pregnancy so don't be alarmed. However, if you experience severe and/or sudden swelling in your hands and face call your doctor. Swelling in these areas are not usually associated with edema and could be a sign of preeclampsia, a serious condition for both mother and baby.

I had lunch with Amanda today, a fellow preg. The two of us barely fit behind the table at Ruby Tuesday. We discussed the possibility of these pregnancies continuing for another month and decided it was just out of the question. The Dr. has been talking c-section with her because her baby might be breech. Same doctor, so, as with me, she has been vague about the actual "when" of this event.

I tried to quit my job yesterday but by the end of the day I had already un-quit. My logic is that I simply don't do much physically here at work -- much less, in fact, than if I were to be home. The Dr. seems to disagree for some reason, and I'm sure I'll have a lot of explaining to do at my appointment next Wednesday. So I still don't know what I'm going to do. My last day WAS going to be March 5th. Now I have no idea...

Well today's doctor's appointment revealed that I have developed a mild case of pre-eclampsia. If it gets worse, we're looking at a possible induction in the next 2-3 weeks or so. Wahoo! :D In the meantime, I'm supposed to call her right away if I notice any swelling in my face or if I get any headaches.

Other that that news, the baby looks great and I continue to gain weight. (How, I'm not exactly sure... my doctor claims it's all fluid... I'll believe THAT when I see it)

Next week starts the fun appointments where I get to find out if I'm dialating. I suppose this is the point where modesty starts taking a backseat to curiousity and a desire to get the baby OUT. :)

I have my 35-week doctor appointment today... more later! :D

The word "induction" has been tossed around a couple of times at my doctor's appointments, as well as among my family and co-workers. It sounds all well and good, because you know when the baby is coming and you know when all the annoying discomfort will finally come to and end. But I’ve been doing some research and inductions apparently come with risks. It could fail entirely and then you end up with a c-section. NO fun. It’s more painful because the drugs that they use to kick-start your labor send you right into hard labor instead of those woosy little crampy things that most people naturally start off with, PLUS there’s way more monitoring that goes into an induction, which means less time NOT tethered to your bed by wires and iv lines. Icky.

I don’t know that I’m desperate enough yet to accept all those risks. I’m not saying I won’t reach that point of desperation, in fact, I think it might be close at hand. I have another two weeks before my doctor would even consider doing it anyway, so we’ll see. I also have a doctor's appointment tomorrow so I'm wondering if she'll bring it up again. Hrm.

I was up again on and off last night with rather painful contractions. They weren't very regular and they didn't have any of the other accompanying signs of early labor, so I wasn't worried about it. But BOY were they uncomfortable. I'm starting to get a little concerned that I feel them a lot in my back.. I've heard BAD BAD things about back labor. Every one of the contractions I have feels like a really bad menstrual cramp with intense lower back pain that goes along with it. :\ It's not excrutiating yet... I mean, if I weren't pregnant, I'd probably pop an Advil or three... but so far, nothing I can't really handle. However, I'm thinking this back pain doesn't bode well.

** The following thought is brought to you by Wishful Thinking **

I hope all these contractions are making some progress and that next week when I get my dreaded internal exam, she tells me I'm 6 centimeters dilated and walks me over to the hospital. ;) That would be nice.

But alas, I am still pregnant. I am still throwing up. And that's all I have to say about that. The baby's clothes and bedding are washed and folded. His carseat will be installed tomorrow. I have a doctor's appointment on Wednesday which could yield some news to write about, but most likely will just be the standard get "weighed, measured, pee in a cup, listen to the heartbeat, explain that my blood pressure isn't really high" routine.

I have been penciling in a lot of commitments on my calendar these days which are P.B.A. (Post-Ben's Arrival). This seems weird to me. Anything that occurs post March 25th seems very surreal. One day I won't have a baby. The next day I will. Hrm. I'm too tired for concepts this deep.

I was trying to find out if my hospital has lifted their "no child visitors/flu" policy yet and I found this info. about visiting hours. Since some of my readers are potential visitors, this might be helpful for some of you to know.

Maternity
12:00 p.m.–8:30 p.m.
Fathers of infants may visit 24 hours a day. Siblings are allowed to visit; otherwise, children must be more than 12 years old to visit. Siblings cannot enter the nursing unit if they have colds, chicken pox, fever or evidence of infection. An adult, other than the patient, must attend siblings at all times.

Ben's foot/knee is lodged straight up in the right side of my ribcage. It's creating a problem because I can't really lean over, bend over or slouch in any way. A tad uncomfortable. I've tried everything to get him to move it... pushed, pulled, gotten on all fours, immersed my tummy in water, jumped up and down... it's just stuck. Ow. Mean baby. :(

I've been dying to use that post title for weeks now. ;) It really doesn't have anything to do with the topic of my post though -- well maybe in a round-about way...

I watch a lot of those baby/birth shows on TLC and Discovery Channel. So many, in fact, that I've seen most of them multiple times. "Oh! This is the one there Sumara Gupta delivers the quadruplets at 34 weeks!" or... "This is the one with that girl Kristy who is delivering twins. One comes out naturally, but the other one gets stuck and they have to do a c-section... this is a good one!!"

Yeah, it's sort of demented and sad.

Anyway, so I was watching this morning, and of course is was one I'd seen. "Shequina Wells was admitted to the hospital twice during her preganancy for pre-term labor... once at 31 weeks and once at 33 weeks. Both times, they stopped it with drugs. Today, she is 35.5 weeks and ready to delivery her baby boy." Blah blah blah... my ears perked up this time though because Ben will be 35 weeks next week. So Shequina had her baby (Michael Wells, Jr.) and he was ... well... a baby! At 35 weeks he looked like a real newborn! So weird to think that's what's actually living in me right now.

A few more weeks of baking though will ensure that he is safe and sound when he makes his appearance. So for now... patience is in order. :) Ho hum...

I think I finally figured out the key to a full night's sleep -- unless of course last night was just a fluke. We'll see.

I decided to make myself stay awake until at least 10:00, I was aiming for 10:30, but that didn't work. I also didn't take my Pepcid until 8:00 (it lasts about 10 hours and then it's another two hours before I can take another one). Voila! Blissful sleep until 6:45! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!

It's 12:45a.m., a time when I've normally been asleep for oh, about 3-1/2 hours at least. But tonight I am wide awake. Anyone want to go see a movie? Get some breakfast? Dig a pool? Seriously. This is annoying. I don't like being awake alone at night. I tried waking Tom up to share in my misery, but he just made some weird noise and rolled over. Grrrr...

So here I sit, in the basement, alone with the cats, who are very confused, yet excited, to have a human awake with them at this ungodly hour. The fish seem excited too. Maybe that's just because I fed them. And Ben, yeah, he's awake too. Weeeee!

This is going to be one of those nights/mornings where I finally fall into a decent sleep around 4:30 or so, only to feel like I've been hit by a truck when the alarm goes off at 7:15 for work. Might be one of those mornings I have to go in late to catch up on some of this sleep I'm missing right now. I'm not very functional without 8 hours... worthless, really.

I think it's safe to say I'm ready for this pregnancy to be over. Not that I'm naive enough to think I'll get sleep when the baby gets here. But at least the sleep I DO try to get won't be plagued by heartburn, nausea and fighting to keep my pillows at the appropriate level of incline. :\ I also think I will be taking full advantage of the ability to sleep on my stomach once I am not pregnant. I was never a stomach sleeper before, but it seems so appealing these days -- mostly because it's completely impossible right now.

Well, I guess that's all. I'm still not tired. But the cats are staring at me and it's sort of unnerving. Time to go toss and turn some more. :(

Just got back from my 34-week appointment... I told Dr. Fitzpatrick about my bout with contractions Saturday night and I was immediately shuffled into the exam room with the contraction monitor. She left me on that for about 15 minutes and of course nothing happened. She said they were probably just Braxton Hicks contractions and not to worry about it anyway because at this point, I'm far enough along that she wouldn't try to stop my labor. Hooray!

I'm under orders to take a bubble bath and lay down every day when I get home from work. This sounds all well and good to me. Oh, and now she wants to see me every week. HOMESTRETCH!!!!

Benjamin is very active (as observed and commented on by the doctor herself). No definitive word as to whether he'll be making any kind of an early appearance, but it seems like it could be a possibiity. :)

There is a theory roaming around that Ben has dropped. (click here for a definition) He definitely FEELS different to me ... lower and putting lots of pressure on my bladder. Plus, since two days ago when I suspect this happened, I've been having cramps. Last night they were very regular and close together which, after hours of watching the clock, almost made me wake Tom up. I was getting a little worried. But they subsided this morning, which is a relief. We want Ben out, but he's not quite fully baked yet, plus Tom's parents are away on a cruise for the next week.

But if he wants to come in three weeks, that would be JUST fine with me. I go to the doctor tomorrow afternoon, so I plan on talking to her about the contractions I had last night and what they mean as far as when Ben might be making his debut...

Okay, so after the night I had last night, I find it very difficult to believe that this child will stay put for another six weeks. God can't possibly be that cruel.

I'm sure those words have been uttered before and I know that this pregnancy actually has the potential to continue on for another 8 weeks.... but seriously. Benjamin's butt is so far up into my rib cage, that I am forced to sit up perfectly straight in order to breathe and he is using his head as a battering ram on my bladder.

THERE IS NO MORE ROOM AT THE INN!!!

And yet, he's supposed to gain another 3-5 pounds? What?!?!!

I've also started having these fun cramps now and then that are rather uncomfortable, and anytime I'm laying on my back for more than a few minutes, the baby starts to press all of his 4 or so pounds right into the most sensitive part of my spine. (and before you go yelling at me for laying on my back, just know that I also spend a significant amount of time on the recommended left side too, sheesh)

My doctor sort of glazed over the word induction at my last appointment. And let me tell you, that word is sounding better and better every day. I have an appointment on Monday. I am definitely going to discuss this possibility.

Yes, you read correctly. As my stomach grows ever larger, I have begun to form a deep relationship with my pillows. I’ve even named them. Will, Phil and Bill. And then there are two smaller ones (the twins) Sal and Hal. Together they create a soft little pillow nest that allows me to get several hours of sleep at a time, usually sort of sitting up.

A few nights ago, I couldn’t find Bill and nearly had a breakdown. Turns out he had somehow migrated under the bed. You see, it’s really the pillows’ team effort that creates the happy place. One missing and the whole pillow fortress is ruined. Tom has reached a state of quiet acceptance with regard to my relationship with Bill, Will, Phil, Sal and Hal. He’s not even really all that jealous anymore!
Though I’m pretty sure he will be happy when he reclaims the extra quarter of the bed that my new friends have taken over. ;)

Here's another one of Benjamin's pictures. :) This one I played with a little bit on Shutterfly. hee hee....

At this point, I am very anxious to get Ben OUT. I have many reasons, some of which are more selfish than others. At any rate, the time is growing ever closer when he has no choice but to leave and I have come to the conclusion that there is absolutely no good way to get a baby out. Unless there is something I don't know, all available exit routes mean pain of some sort.

I have heard people say that this pain isn't as bad as the 9 months of discomfort they have already endured. Apparently their reasoning is that there is a definitive end to it-- 24 hours or so and it's over. I don't know if I buy that, but it's a nice sentiment.

I have also heard people say that it was the most painful, excruciating thing they've ever gone through. I try to ignore these people and tell myself that the epidural is my friend and would NEVER ever not work. Right?

The interesting thing is that both sets of these people say they would do it all again in a heartbeat. This is somewhat comforting. Keyword being "somewhat."

To tell you the truth, I'm slightly more worried about figuring out whether or not I am IN labor than actually being in labor. I figure that once I'm in the middle of the whole thing, I'll just deal with what comes as it comes. At that point, what else can ya do? You just deal. But the time leading up to labor is weird. Is this it? Or did I just eat some bad seafood? I also dread something happening like my water breaking at work. How embarassing. Contractions at work wouldn't be so bad. But the idea of someone having to clean up after me, horrifying. Ew.

Found this quiz at Americanbaby.com. Here's what Tom scored. (according to my answers, anyway) ;)
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Quiz: What Kind of Dad Will He Be?
He's a Hands-On Dad!

This dad is very involved in the nitty-gritty of parenting. He loves being around kids, and it shows. He doesn't consider it a chore to bathe a kid, host a play date, or help with homework.

While his involvement with the kids is heart-warming, there are some difficulties you might run into with this type of dad. For instance, if you don't agree on how a parenting situation should be handled, it could get a bit sticky. Clarify your approaches to parenting early on by exploring parenting what-ifs (What if our child refuses to eat dinner? What if our child throws a tantrum in the store?), role-playing, and discussing parenting articles or books together.

A hands-on dad might also tend to be a worrier. Reassure him that while his protectiveness is understandable, the children need space to grow and learn. It's important to keep the kids safe, but at the same time a scraped knee is nothing to panic about.

I was talking to a friend today who is pregnant and due the same day as I am. She has had the worst string of luck and has already been in the hospital two or three times since she's been pregnant! Kidney stones, car-accident, contractions... you name it. Makes me feel grateful that my only real problem has been the throwing up. I haven't even had to see the doctor outside of my scheduled appointments. It's a little amazing when you think about all the things that have the potential to go wrong with this whole complicated process. I'm hoping for another 7 weeks (or less!) of the same!

Here's one of Tom's baby pictures. ;) JUST KIDDING.

I found this pic online while looking for baby t-shirts. How sad for this child, he's going to get beat up in daycare...

It's official. With the addition of a crib mattress yesterday afternoon, the nursery is FINALLY finished. I'll post pics when I find a decent digital camera to borrow.
I like just going in there and looking around. It's fun to look at all the the tiny things over and over again. :)

Speaking of tiny things, I bought the baby way too many sleepers yesterday at Toys R Us. I think I might exchange two or three today for larger sizes since I bought all newborn ones. Hey, I'm not weird, it's part of the fun! ;)

Yesterday, I think Ben briefly flipped himself upside down because he got the hiccups and they were WAY up high instead of down low where they usually are. This was cause for a minor freak-out. But he has had normal hiccups since and things seem to be back in order. Good boy.

OH! And mom and I found something really cute to bring Ben home in. In keeping with the Guess How Much I Love You theme...