Home stretch…

We had our weekly doctor visit this week and received some exciting news. The doctor could feel the baby's head and states he is VERY low and his head is in the perfect position for delivery. As of Thursday, I was 50% effaced but hadn't started dilating yet. He said my body was ready to go and I should start dilating anytime.

We spoke to him more about the induction. He's going to keep an eye on me and if he feels that my body is ready to deliver and needs a little push, he'll induce me somewhere between three days before and three days after my due date. Apparently there is a recommended dosage of pitocin that most doctors use but it's more than the body actually needs. He'll start me on a much lower dosage and will only increase it if my body needs it. If I'm given the pitocin and my body starts doing all the work on it's own, then he'll take me off the pitocin all together for a more natural birth. We're both very comfortable with everything now and trust our doctor with everything because he really is great.

I switched over to the heparin this morning. It looks a little intimidating... instead of pre-filled syringes we have to draw it out of the vile ourselves and the needle is slightly bigger but I'm happy to say that the medicine doesn't feel like liquid fire like the lovenox did. I'll be taking two injections a day from now until I go into labor.

Cliff and I are driving to Orlando today to pick up the dresser for the nursery. I know, driving such a long way sounds crazy but we haven't had much luck in finding a dresser in our price range so this seemed to be the best option. Besides, we enjoy car trips and look forward to spending some time together since this may be our last weekend before we're officially parents. By the end of the weekend the nursery should be pretty much finished. I'll post pictures as soon as they're available!

He’s a comin’

Cliff and I went to our weekly doctors appointment today. I was hooked up to a heart monitor and the doctor says that the baby is perfectly healthy. After much poking and prodding, he also informed us that the baby has dropped into the pelvis and is in perfect position for birth.

Since I've been taking the Lovenox injections, the doctor is talking about inducing me 3 or 4 days before my due date. Apparently, the Lovenox must be stopped 2 weeks prior to the delivery to control bleeding (since it's a blood thinner). They will be switching me to another injection called Heprin which is supposed to be stopped 24 hours before delivery. We were pretty set on not being induced, but apparently the doctor would prefer to have things more controlled. He is supportive to our wishes though and understands if we do not want the induction as long as the pregnancy doesn't go past 40 weeks. We didn't have a whole lot of time to talk to the doctor today as Cliff had to get to work, but we will be talking with him more on the subject next week and will make our decision from there.

It's crazy to think that our little man is going to be with us in the next three weeks. I love to put it into perspective by thinking about where we were at just three weeks ago... New Years Day. He's going to be here so soon! I can't wait! I feel like a little kid anticipating Christmas, lol.

Just a Little Update…

We had another doctor appointment today. They didn't do an ultrasound so we don't have any new pictures of the baby yet, but there's a picture that Cliff took of me last week that I figured I'd post. I'll be calling tomorrow morning to make an appointment in two weeks for THE ultrasound. Hopefully the child will be cooperative, lol. We did get to hear the baby's heartbeat again today. Everything seems to be going well and the baby is healthy.

First Belly Photo

A few nights ago I noticed that my belly was really starting to grow. So Cliff grabbed the camera and took our first belly shot at 8 weeks, 4 days. To other people it may not look like a big deal, but it was really exciting for me to actually be able to see for the first time a change in my shape. I already have a pair of pants that don't fit anymore, although that could be due to the fact that I've been loving food a whole lot more, ha ha.

We have an appointment scheduled for next week at which time we'll be able to hear the baby's heart beat and get a due date. It seems like time has been crawling these past few weeks as we've been anticipating this appointment. Now, it's only 10 days away!

I have been feeling great too. No morning sickness or any weird cravings, I've just been very tired. Oh, and my memory has been horrible. Like a couple of weeks ago when I went to Publix with the intention of buying Sprite. I sat in the grocery aisle looking at the difference in prices between Sprite and Publix Lemon-Lime soda. For some reason, it took me a very long time to work the prices out in my head and when I finally did, I walked away without even picking up the sprite I was there to get in the first place. Then there was the wine incident. I bought alcohol removed wine since I can't have the real stuff and poured myself a glass before sitting down to watch a movie with Cliff. As I was sipping on it I suddenly freaked out, almost spilling it on myself as I thought, "Oh my goodness!! What am I doing?!?! I can't have wine!!!"... completely forgetting about the fact that I had specifically bought the alcohol removed wine for that purpose. Since then there have been several other instances, but of course, I can't remember them.

Tonight Cliff bought me a special gift that I am VERY excited about. He told me a while ago that there was something he really wanted to buy for me and then a few days ago mentioned he had purchased it. It came in today and I just about started crying when he had me open it. It was a flip video camera. Always thinking ahead, Cliff thought it would be a good idea for me to have the little video camera to keep with me at all times so that we can catch all the important things on video. He mentioned video taping the baby's heartbeat at my next appointment and of course footage of the little one once they're born. And all the stuff Cliff might like to see (although he doesn't necessarily want to be present for) like shopping for baby stuff with our moms. I love my husband and his great big heart! =)