40 Weeks, 3 days - Dr. Appt

Just thought I would give everyone a quick update. I saw my Dr. this afternoon and she checked my cervix. I am still 50% effaced but have now dilated to 2 cm (last time she checked me, I wasn't dilating yet). She also stripped my membranes in hopes that might get things started. So far I just feel really crampy, but still no contractions. I have another appointment on Monday morning. If we still don't have a baby at that time, they will induce me on Tuesday. I would REALLY like for Luca to start the process on his own, but at this point I am so huge and uncomfortable that I just want him to be here - even if it means I have to be induced. So, it looks like we will either have a Halloween baby or a November baby :-)

Yesterday was my last day of work, so I spent today running errands and doing some more cleaning/nesting around the house. It seems like the cleaning projects are never ending, and since Luca is taking his time getting here, I just keep finding more and more things that need to be done. I bought a bunch of Halloween candy at the grocery store today hoping that we won't be here tomorrow night to hand it out. Of course the problem with that, is that if we can't hand out the candy tomorrow because we are at the hospital, then I will have 250 pieces of candy sitting around the house when I come home - and I always buy the kind of candy that I like to eat :-)

So the waiting game continues...at least for a few more days. It is nice to know that regardless of what happens this weekend though, we will be holding our little baby by next Tuesday (or Wednesday at the latest)! We can't wait to meet you Luca!

Welcome Allison Daisy Butorac!

Tony's younger brother, Mikey, and his wife, Stephanie, gave birth to their little girl, Allison Daisy, at 9:46 PM on October 29th. She was 6 lbs, 8 oz, 20 inches long and absolutely beautiful! Congratulations Mikey and Steph!

Since they had the baby at a hospital over on the west side, Tony and I were not able to be there (since Luca could decide to make his appearance any time and we are not supposed to be more than a half hour from the hospital). Stephanie and I have gone through every part of our pregnancies together (and Mikey and Tony have been able to really bond over the experience as well) so it was really hard not being able to be there. I was practically texting Mikey every 5 minutes for an update :-) I am just so anxious for Luca's arrival and still so nervous about the whole delivery process that I wanted to know exactly what Steph was feeling and how she was dealing with everything. It was a VERY long day for both of them! Steph was induced at 5 AM yesterday morning and did not have the baby until almost 10 PM last night. We are so glad that everything worked out and Alli arrived safe and healthy. We cannot wait to meet our new neice!

We also cannot wait to meet our son! Anytime my darling Luca...

39 Weeks, 6 Days, 18 Hours...

I had a Dr. Appt this afternoon so I thought I should give everyone an update.

First I will start with the fact that I came down with a terrible cold two Friday's ago. Definitely not what I needed when I was ready to have a baby any day. I felt pretty crummy all last week but tried to keep it under control with lots of Airborne, Tylenol Cold and plenty of fluids. By the end of the week I was feeling a little bit better. However, this weekend it hit me all over again - mostly in my sinuses. My nose has been plugged for the last 3 days making it very difficult to breath (as if I wasn't having enough trouble doing that already), my ears are ringing, my teeth hurt from all the sinus pressure and today my whole body ached all over. At this point, I am having a hard time determining which aches and pains are from the cold and which are from being almost 40 weeks pregnant. I am also trying really hard to finish up a bunch of stuff at work before I go on maternity leave, but I am having a hard time concentrating because my head is so congested.

So, I had my weekly checkup today. She asked if I had noticed any changes in the last week or felt any contractions, etc. I told her I still haven't felt any contractions, but that my lower back has been aching all day. Again, this could be due to any number of things - like the fact that I was cleaning the house last night or that I have a baby the size of a watermelon in my belly that is growing straight out and putting tons of strain on my lower back. I told the Dr. that my main concern at this point is that my cold isn't getting any better and that my sinuses were completely clogged. I also told her that I was achy all over, but didn't feel like I had a fever. She said that she would prescribe me some antibiotics in case I have a sinus infection so that we can try to get it cleared up before I go into labor. She also said that she didn't want to check me today because she didn't want to "start" anything as she really wants me to feel better before the baby gets here. It would be a little difficult to breath through contractions with my nose all stuffed up. Luca is still moving around a lot, which is good. Mostly I feel his feet trying to kick through my stomach. Poor guy, he must be totally out of room in there! I scheduled another appointment for Friday so she can see if the antibiotics are working and she will also check my cervix at that time. If I haven't made any more progress since my last appointment, then we will look at scheduling a day to induce me. At my last appointment (39 weeks), I was 50% effaced, but not yet dilating. If it looks like I have made some progress, they will give me another couple days to see if Luca decides to come out on his own. But, she said after 41 weeks they will "kick him out" :-)

At this point I am just really frustrated. This is not how I wanted to feel days before we meet our little baby! It amazes me that I made it the entire pregnancy and didn't get sick once, and then I get sick right before I am supposed to deliver! I am still so anxious for Luca to get here, but at this point I am hoping he will hold out a few more days and hopefully the antibiotics will kick in and clear up my sinuses and I will start to feel better. Please keep us in your thoughts and pray that I will feel better soon!

38 Weeks!

Ready to pop!

I had my weekly Dr. checkup today. I have always hated going to the Dr. for my annual pap smear/physical. I am very modest and just always feel so uncomfortable during those kinds of appointments. However, it is amazing how much that changes when you are having a baby. I still can't say that I "enjoy" being checked by the Dr., but I have been excited all week to find out if my body is making any more progress towards having this baby. That being said, I was a little disappointed when the Dr. DIDN'T check me today! Almost all of their rooms were full so the nurse took me to one of the regular exam rooms (not one that is set up for pregnant women). She took my blood pressure, etc. and then told me to hold off on getting undressed because she would probably move me to a different room once one became available. Well, the midwife came in my room before another one cleared out so we just ended up chatting a little bit more about what to expect these last couple weeks and when to come to the hospital, etc.

One thing I have been concerned about is that fact that I have not been feeling any braxton hicks contractions. Some of you may think this is a good thing (which it probably is), but it just makes me nervous that I am not making any progress towards labor. Plus, I want to at least experience some contractions (even if they aren't as painful as the ones I will have in labor) so I can better prepare myself for what to expect and how a contraction feels. Most of my fear and anxiety about labor revolves around the fact that I have no idea what to expect or anything to compare it to. The midwife explained that it is very normal for a first-time pregnant woman to NOT be feeling contractions at this point. She said that my uterus has never been stretched out like this before and my body is doing lots of different things to prepare itself for labor so not to worry.

She said baby's heartbeat is very strong and we are both very healthy. She also said that now it is pretty much a waiting game. I couldn't agree more!

37 Weeks!

Only 3 more weeks to go! However, I would not be upset if Luca decided to make his appearance a little earlier :-) I am completely exhausted, but I am so huge and uncomfortable that it is almost impossible to get any sleep at night. I get winded and am out of breath just sitting at my desk and talking on the phone with clients - which seems completely ridiculous, but it's true. My hips feel like they are just floating around and I think the baby is sitting right on my sciatic nerve because I get shooting pains in my back and legs if I step wrong or move too quickly. This is definitely the hardest part of being pregnant!

I am now going to the Dr. every week and I had my appointment yesterday morning. The last couple times I have gone to the Dr. I have seen the midwife that works in the office. It will either be her or the OBGYN that will deliver me. At first I was a little nervous because I wasn't sure how much training and what kind of medical background midwives have, but after meeting with her a few times (and asking her questions about the major differences between midwives and OB's) I feel much better and I actually think I would prefer to have her deliver the baby since I have only seen Dr. Sand (my OB) about 3 times this entire pregnancy (he did all the ultrasounds).

So, she "checked" me yesterday and said that my cervix feels soft and "jellowy" - which is apparently a good thing. I guess normally your cervix is like a hard little knob (kind of like the end of your nose) and she said it is very good progress that it is so soft already since this is my first pregnancy. She said that I was not yet dilating, but there was only a very thin membrane left before my cervix starts to open. All this progress was music to my ears! However, she also said that I could be dilated to 4 cm and not have a baby for another couple weeks or I could not be dilated at all and still have a baby that night. So, I guess Luca is still going to make his appearance whenever he is ready and cm don't mean much :-) I am looking forward to next week's appointment though to see if any more progress has been made!