I know I haven't posted in quite awhile. We've been a little busy, as you can imagine. As I have a sleeping baby on my chest and she's due to wake up any moment for the next feeding, I'll just do a quick update on what's been going on.
First off, she passed her 2 week doctor's appointment with flying colors. She was 6 pounds, 12 ounces...5 ounces more than she was at birth so she's gaining just fine! All signs of jaundice are definitely gone (we had a high bilirubin count at the first doctor's visit)...the doctor says she's 'just perfect'!
Feeding has been interesting. To make a VERY long story short, we've had quite a few obstacles in the breastfeeding arena. The current position is that I am attempting to breastfeed at every feeding. Sometimes we're successful, sometimes we're not. Sometimes I have to use a nipple shield to aid the process, sometimes I don't. I'm pumping after most feedings and storing what I can to supplement for feedings. We have had to give her formula here and there, but I've just decided that it's OK. The whole process is frustrating, but we're doing what we can. She's getting what she needs which is the most important thing. I was a formula baby and I turned out OK!
Miss Zoe has her days and nights mixed up! Oh, how much fun that is. Basically for the last few weeks, she sleeps during the day and WILL NOT sleep at night. I'm not talking about sleeping THROUGH the night...I'm talking about sleeping AT ALL. She will sleep if you're holding her. That's it. So, last night we tried a few new tactics. Stephen went back to work today and we HAD to get some sleep. We're now changing her BEFORE feedings instead of after to keep her from waking up too much after eating. Also, I must admit, I used the formula to help out. Mom had mentioned that formula tends to help with sleep so we supplemented a little with each feeding. The biggest change is we put her to bed in her room instead of in the bassinet in our room. We wondered if being in our room was too distracting for her or maybe she just didn't really like the bassinet. Anyway, she DID sleep in her crib and did just fine. I still only got about 5 hours sleep broken into 3 parts, but I'll take it! Especially with Stephen back at work, I don't have someone there to watch her while I sleep (which is kind of what we've been doing the last 3 weeks). Anyway, we'll see how it goes the next few weeks...supposedly between 1-2 months they start differentiating between night and day more so hopefully we're moving in that direction!
She's becoming more alert for periods of time now! Very exciting! She's looking forward to meeting her paternal grandparents for the first time tomorrow:-)
Monday, November 29, 2010
Friday, November 19, 2010
Tuesday, November 9...Zoe's Birthday!
At about 8:00 the next morning, the nurse came by and checked on me. I was starting to feel some pain/pressure but I wasn't worried about being ready to go yet. From what I heard from everyone, when it's time to push, you have the undeniable urge to push...I could feel the pressure but I didn't feel like I HAD to push. Anyway, I still figured the nurse would check me just in case.
In fact, she told me the doctor was due in anytime in the next hour and to prevent more chance of spread of infection, we should wait to have me checked until she got there. If she hadn't shown up in an hour, though, the nurse would go ahead and check me.
It sounded like a reasonable plan. But I must admit, when I heard it could be another hour before they even checked me, I did have a mini-panic attack in my head.
That should have been my first clue.
About 20 minutes later, I woke Stephen up and told him to go get the nurse because I was really feeling uncomfortable. Again, I didn't feel like I absolutely HAD to push, but the thought of waiting for the doctor also sounded unbearable. So, the nurse came in and sure enough, I was +3 and fully dilated.
Here we go!
I believe at that time it was around 8:45. The nurse went to page the doctor to tell her I was ready to rock and roll. We then prepped me for the pushing process. It was weird because I couldn't really feel my legs. I could feel when people touched them, but...I don't know, it's hard to explain. I certainly couldn't lift them on my own. So, Stephen took one leg and the nurse took the other and we did several rounds of pushing.
Now let me say this: this was probably the one part of the whole experience where I was definitely glad to have gone to a birthing class. I knew exactly how to push and bear down...how to round my back into a 'C' and push like I was going to the bathroom. I also knew I didn't HAVE to count to 10...just hold it until I couldn't anymore, then calmly let out and pull in to do another push. We went like this for about 20 minutes or so...me letting both Stephen and the nurse know when I felt the urge to push and going through a round. Soon enough, the doctor showed up and we got down to business.
It only took me until 9:24. The nurses all said it was one of the fastest deliveries they've seen with a first born. I remember thinking, thank goodness it wasn't any longer! It wasn't that it HURT, but at one point I remember feeling her head halfway out and thinking...'oh this baby better come out NOW.'. They had warned me that some first-time moms take up to 3 hours of pushing...ummm...no. We weren't doing that.
And out she came! Stephen did cut the cord...although I think he was somewhat wary. Dr. Tyler convinced him to do it, though and I think he's glad he did. They placed her on my chest immediately and I'm not quite sure I can describe how I felt at that moment. Definitely relief that it was over and she was here. I think there was some disbelief mixed in there as well. Like, how could this little thing have been in my tummy?
The next few hours were a blur. They did all the normal things, weight, length, anti-bacterial eye goop, warm her up in the warmer, Apgar scores (she was an 8 and a 9...nice and healthy). Someone thankfully reminded Stephen to take pictures...otherwise we might not have! I think he was as stunned as I was! They had me nurse her and she got her first bath...Stephen taking mental notes all along as we had missed our parenting class, if you recall. Truth is, we didn't really need it...they went through everything at the hospital. The one thing I WISH I had done was go to a breastfeeding class beforehand, but we'll get to those difficulties later...
We moved rooms. We really just moved to another birthing suite, but they wanted to be able to clean everything up in our room so it was just easier to give us a fresh room. I had to wait several hours until I could walk again...one of my legs took particularly long getting over the epidural so I had to be helped to and from the bathroom. Oh! The other thing the birthing class was great for was informing me how much you bleed after the fact. It makes sense, but I had never heard it before and was very thankful for being prepared. The nurse in our birthing class described it very well...you don't have a flow for 9 months and then it feels like you have all of those you missed in one cycle.
But little Miss Zoe. I really think that day was just such a blur. I didn't really GET that our daughter had been born until later, after I had a nap and Stephen was off getting lunch. I was holding her and I just started crying. Here she was! This perfect little bundle that we were responsible for. Amazing.
We spent the rest of the day recuperating and enjoying our new family. We were left alone, for the most part (although I wish I had forced the issue with breastfeeding difficulties earlier. Again...more on that later) and other than a few visitors (my boss and a coworker, my brothers, and a good friend of my mom's...playing the role of surrogate grandma as my parents were still in Houston) we really got to spend most of the day to ourselves.
I am sorry to anyone who texted/called/what-have-you to no avail. We were just a little preoccupied with our little Zoe-Bug!
In fact, she told me the doctor was due in anytime in the next hour and to prevent more chance of spread of infection, we should wait to have me checked until she got there. If she hadn't shown up in an hour, though, the nurse would go ahead and check me.
It sounded like a reasonable plan. But I must admit, when I heard it could be another hour before they even checked me, I did have a mini-panic attack in my head.
That should have been my first clue.
About 20 minutes later, I woke Stephen up and told him to go get the nurse because I was really feeling uncomfortable. Again, I didn't feel like I absolutely HAD to push, but the thought of waiting for the doctor also sounded unbearable. So, the nurse came in and sure enough, I was +3 and fully dilated.
Here we go!
I believe at that time it was around 8:45. The nurse went to page the doctor to tell her I was ready to rock and roll. We then prepped me for the pushing process. It was weird because I couldn't really feel my legs. I could feel when people touched them, but...I don't know, it's hard to explain. I certainly couldn't lift them on my own. So, Stephen took one leg and the nurse took the other and we did several rounds of pushing.
Now let me say this: this was probably the one part of the whole experience where I was definitely glad to have gone to a birthing class. I knew exactly how to push and bear down...how to round my back into a 'C' and push like I was going to the bathroom. I also knew I didn't HAVE to count to 10...just hold it until I couldn't anymore, then calmly let out and pull in to do another push. We went like this for about 20 minutes or so...me letting both Stephen and the nurse know when I felt the urge to push and going through a round. Soon enough, the doctor showed up and we got down to business.
It only took me until 9:24. The nurses all said it was one of the fastest deliveries they've seen with a first born. I remember thinking, thank goodness it wasn't any longer! It wasn't that it HURT, but at one point I remember feeling her head halfway out and thinking...'oh this baby better come out NOW.'. They had warned me that some first-time moms take up to 3 hours of pushing...ummm...no. We weren't doing that.
And out she came! Stephen did cut the cord...although I think he was somewhat wary. Dr. Tyler convinced him to do it, though and I think he's glad he did. They placed her on my chest immediately and I'm not quite sure I can describe how I felt at that moment. Definitely relief that it was over and she was here. I think there was some disbelief mixed in there as well. Like, how could this little thing have been in my tummy?
The next few hours were a blur. They did all the normal things, weight, length, anti-bacterial eye goop, warm her up in the warmer, Apgar scores (she was an 8 and a 9...nice and healthy). Someone thankfully reminded Stephen to take pictures...otherwise we might not have! I think he was as stunned as I was! They had me nurse her and she got her first bath...Stephen taking mental notes all along as we had missed our parenting class, if you recall. Truth is, we didn't really need it...they went through everything at the hospital. The one thing I WISH I had done was go to a breastfeeding class beforehand, but we'll get to those difficulties later...
We moved rooms. We really just moved to another birthing suite, but they wanted to be able to clean everything up in our room so it was just easier to give us a fresh room. I had to wait several hours until I could walk again...one of my legs took particularly long getting over the epidural so I had to be helped to and from the bathroom. Oh! The other thing the birthing class was great for was informing me how much you bleed after the fact. It makes sense, but I had never heard it before and was very thankful for being prepared. The nurse in our birthing class described it very well...you don't have a flow for 9 months and then it feels like you have all of those you missed in one cycle.
But little Miss Zoe. I really think that day was just such a blur. I didn't really GET that our daughter had been born until later, after I had a nap and Stephen was off getting lunch. I was holding her and I just started crying. Here she was! This perfect little bundle that we were responsible for. Amazing.
We spent the rest of the day recuperating and enjoying our new family. We were left alone, for the most part (although I wish I had forced the issue with breastfeeding difficulties earlier. Again...more on that later) and other than a few visitors (my boss and a coworker, my brothers, and a good friend of my mom's...playing the role of surrogate grandma as my parents were still in Houston) we really got to spend most of the day to ourselves.
I am sorry to anyone who texted/called/what-have-you to no avail. We were just a little preoccupied with our little Zoe-Bug!
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Monday, November 8 - West Wing Water Breaks
Our new adventure began a little over a week ago. It had been a fairly normal day. I did not have to go to the center, but I did have to go downtown to see my tutoring students down there. I had been particularly uncomfortable that day and so I was glad when I found out that one of the three kiddos I see from that family had a basketball game and would be skipping his session for the night. On this particular night, it was nice to be able to go home early.
I got home and used my extra time to have a nice long conversation with Jaime...a much overdue conversation at that! After talking for over an hour, I helped Stephen get ready for dinner. I wasn't feeling good all of the sudden so he did most of the work and luckily I was able to choke down half a fillet of tilapia, couscous and...broccoli, I think it was. After eating something, I felt much better. Still uncomfortable, but my stomach was no longer turning.
Stephen discovered recently that I never watched the TV show 'West Wing'. Apparently, this was unacceptable so we have started adding season discs to our Netflix queue. We had just watched the second to last episode on the disc. I still wasn't feeling great, but good enough and we decided to finish off the disc so we could go ahead and send it. About 5 minutes into the show, I felt two swift kicks from the baby. Only they didn't feel like they normally did. It was almost like she was kicking me, but without the hindrance of fluid. They were strong kicks! I mentioned something to Stephen about how it felt odd...I didn't say anything to him yet, but in the back of my head, I was wondering if maybe it was my water breaking because it did feel an awful lot like a 'pop'. Nothing happened right away so I figured it was just a few big kicks.
And then I moved slightly.
I believe my next words to Stephen were...'RUN and get some towels...we're having this baby!' I remember thinking about how the lady at the birthing class had emphasized the fact that water breaking is not necessarily like how it is in the movies...some people only feel a trickle...
Yeah, right.
Let's just say by the time we made it to the hospital, I had soaked through 3 maxi pads, 3 towels, and 2 pairs of pants. And it's the weirdest feeling because you have no control over it! You move just slightly and fluid is everywhere! The birthing class instructor was right, it's not like the movies, it's worse! At least for me it was. I actually laughed out loud when the birthing center nurses said they had to wait to admit me until they had tested me to make sure I actually broke my water. At that point, either my water broke or we were headed to the ER with a bladder problem!
After reaffirming that yes, my water had indeed broken, I was hooked up to monitors and an IV port was placed. We spent the next few hours watching the rise and fall of growing contractions. When I was checked in, I was 2 cm and 80% effaced. At 2 AM, the nurse had me start walking the halls to get the contractions going. We walked for an hour, Stephen holding my big jug of water and charged with rubbing my back with my breathing every time I had a contraction. It took us about 15 minutes to walk the circle of the birthing center (approximately the same as walking the perimeter of the house, maybe just a smidge more. My contractions were much stronger now and each time one would hit, I would have to grab the hand holds on the wall and sway back and forth until it was over.
At 3 we made our way back to the room and I told Stephen I was ready for some pain meds. At this point, I was moaning with each contraction. The nurse checked me and I was...
a whole whopping 3 cm...fully effaced. But still, 3??!!
Um, yeah...epidural please?
The anesthesiologist came in around 3:30 and the epidural went smoothly. I was having a contraction during the whole thing, but the nurse was wonderful in helping me stay still and breathe through it.
At about 5, a new shift of nurses came in and introduced themselves to me. They checked me and I had made it to 5 cm! Hooray! But my contractions were still not picking up which means that although I was dilating fine, the baby might not be descending so they decided to give me a very small dose of Pitocin. They didn't want to give me too much because the baby's heart rate had been elevated so I was on Oxygen as well.
I was told to rest. Yeah, right. Well, admittedly, I did get about 45 minutes of sleep...just enough to gather my strength for what was yet to come...
Finally I could get some sleep...only about 45 minutes worth, but I'll take it!
I got home and used my extra time to have a nice long conversation with Jaime...a much overdue conversation at that! After talking for over an hour, I helped Stephen get ready for dinner. I wasn't feeling good all of the sudden so he did most of the work and luckily I was able to choke down half a fillet of tilapia, couscous and...broccoli, I think it was. After eating something, I felt much better. Still uncomfortable, but my stomach was no longer turning.
Stephen discovered recently that I never watched the TV show 'West Wing'. Apparently, this was unacceptable so we have started adding season discs to our Netflix queue. We had just watched the second to last episode on the disc. I still wasn't feeling great, but good enough and we decided to finish off the disc so we could go ahead and send it. About 5 minutes into the show, I felt two swift kicks from the baby. Only they didn't feel like they normally did. It was almost like she was kicking me, but without the hindrance of fluid. They were strong kicks! I mentioned something to Stephen about how it felt odd...I didn't say anything to him yet, but in the back of my head, I was wondering if maybe it was my water breaking because it did feel an awful lot like a 'pop'. Nothing happened right away so I figured it was just a few big kicks.
And then I moved slightly.
I believe my next words to Stephen were...'RUN and get some towels...we're having this baby!' I remember thinking about how the lady at the birthing class had emphasized the fact that water breaking is not necessarily like how it is in the movies...some people only feel a trickle...
Yeah, right.
Let's just say by the time we made it to the hospital, I had soaked through 3 maxi pads, 3 towels, and 2 pairs of pants. And it's the weirdest feeling because you have no control over it! You move just slightly and fluid is everywhere! The birthing class instructor was right, it's not like the movies, it's worse! At least for me it was. I actually laughed out loud when the birthing center nurses said they had to wait to admit me until they had tested me to make sure I actually broke my water. At that point, either my water broke or we were headed to the ER with a bladder problem!
After reaffirming that yes, my water had indeed broken, I was hooked up to monitors and an IV port was placed. We spent the next few hours watching the rise and fall of growing contractions. When I was checked in, I was 2 cm and 80% effaced. At 2 AM, the nurse had me start walking the halls to get the contractions going. We walked for an hour, Stephen holding my big jug of water and charged with rubbing my back with my breathing every time I had a contraction. It took us about 15 minutes to walk the circle of the birthing center (approximately the same as walking the perimeter of the house, maybe just a smidge more. My contractions were much stronger now and each time one would hit, I would have to grab the hand holds on the wall and sway back and forth until it was over.
At 3 we made our way back to the room and I told Stephen I was ready for some pain meds. At this point, I was moaning with each contraction. The nurse checked me and I was...
a whole whopping 3 cm...fully effaced. But still, 3??!!
Um, yeah...epidural please?
The anesthesiologist came in around 3:30 and the epidural went smoothly. I was having a contraction during the whole thing, but the nurse was wonderful in helping me stay still and breathe through it.
At about 5, a new shift of nurses came in and introduced themselves to me. They checked me and I had made it to 5 cm! Hooray! But my contractions were still not picking up which means that although I was dilating fine, the baby might not be descending so they decided to give me a very small dose of Pitocin. They didn't want to give me too much because the baby's heart rate had been elevated so I was on Oxygen as well.
I was told to rest. Yeah, right. Well, admittedly, I did get about 45 minutes of sleep...just enough to gather my strength for what was yet to come...
Finally I could get some sleep...only about 45 minutes worth, but I'll take it!
Sunday, November 14, 2010
A Whole New World
Ok, admit it. How many of you started singing that song from 'Aladdin' when you read the title? Don't be shy!
So sorry it's taken this long to catch everyone up. As you can imagine, we've been a little preoccupied the last few days. In fact, last night I got AT LEAST 5 hours sleep which was AWESOME. Before that I was probably averaging about 1.5-2 hours a night plus a 1-2 hour nap during the day. I went to Babies R Us with my mom yesterday to pick up a few things and get out of the house for an hour and I could tell being in the real world that I was COMPLETELY sleep deprived. Thanks to some changes in our routine, I'm doing much better today!
In the next few posts, I'm going to attempt to take you all back through the last week day by day so you can get the full-on Baby Zoe experience. I'll try to leave out icky details as I'm sure not everyone needs to know why the nurse had to run to the bathroom for tissues when I started pushing or what the little water squeeze bottle I got with my postpartum package is for...
I know many of you could care less about the details and would rather just check out all the cute pictures we have! We're still collecting everything from my parents and friends who have taken pictures so there may not be enough to your satisfaction but that's just the way it is.
Here's a sample!
TO actually go to the album, click on the little color wheel in the lower right hand corner and you can then click on the link to the album. (you may have to move your mouse over the slide show for the icons to show up). To see the cute captions Stephen made, click on the little text box on the lower left. Enjoy!
More info to come! Stay tuned!
So sorry it's taken this long to catch everyone up. As you can imagine, we've been a little preoccupied the last few days. In fact, last night I got AT LEAST 5 hours sleep which was AWESOME. Before that I was probably averaging about 1.5-2 hours a night plus a 1-2 hour nap during the day. I went to Babies R Us with my mom yesterday to pick up a few things and get out of the house for an hour and I could tell being in the real world that I was COMPLETELY sleep deprived. Thanks to some changes in our routine, I'm doing much better today!
In the next few posts, I'm going to attempt to take you all back through the last week day by day so you can get the full-on Baby Zoe experience. I'll try to leave out icky details as I'm sure not everyone needs to know why the nurse had to run to the bathroom for tissues when I started pushing or what the little water squeeze bottle I got with my postpartum package is for...
I know many of you could care less about the details and would rather just check out all the cute pictures we have! We're still collecting everything from my parents and friends who have taken pictures so there may not be enough to your satisfaction but that's just the way it is.
Here's a sample!
TO actually go to the album, click on the little color wheel in the lower right hand corner and you can then click on the link to the album. (you may have to move your mouse over the slide show for the icons to show up). To see the cute captions Stephen made, click on the little text box on the lower left. Enjoy!
More info to come! Stay tuned!
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Miss Zoe has arrived!
At 9:24 this morning, Zoe Elizabeth Slaboda was born! She weighed in at 6 lbs, 7 oz...19.75 inches! Scored 8 and 9 on her Apgar scores...the nurses all were impressed at how fast she came out...I think I pushed for about an hour or less. In this pic, Zoe is warming up after her first bath which she was not so thrilled about:-D. More to come later...Zoe-Bug needs to eat and then so does Mommy!
"The day" update
We're at 5cm with a wonderful epidural...got a bit of sleep thanks to it, and just waiting for the next step.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Here We Go!
Well, my water broke a little over an hour ago. Contractions have started. 2 cm dilated, 80% effaced. Woohoo!
Friday, November 5, 2010
Closer...and Closer...
Had my first 'full-term' appointment today! Everything looks great! As I mentioned before, I'm definitely starting to feel some aches and pains and discomfort with being so pregnant. However, my blood pressure is still good and while I have had some swelling, the doctor checked and said it's fairly minimal so not to worry...just keep the feet up when possible. I'm starting to feel generally crampy...not sharp or anything, just achy...especially when I'm standing or sitting up. Overall, I really can't complain too much. I DID feel ridiculous as I haven't shaved my legs in about a month (I can reach my legs but it's WAY uncomfortable and since it's cooler...or SUPPOSED to be...why bother). Oh well. I'm sure I'm not the first uber pregnant woman they've seen with hairy legs!
The big news is I'm 1 cm dilated and starting to thin out just slightly. The doctor said I 'should be good' for my appointment next week. So...hopefully she'll hang on until Mom and Dad get back from Houston. It's also good to know that the process is beginning! For those of you who don't know much about all this (myself included), beginning to dilate doesn't mean much. Mom said she was dilated from a month before I finally came along. We'll just have to wait and see if anything's changed by next week. The doctor also said he could actually push the head back from the cervix so she's definitely down there!
On the subject of induction. I did ask what was typical protocol for that. While I didn't see my normal doc today (and thus will have to ask her next week anyway) the doc I saw today said that standard practice is not to go past 42 weeks (December 9) but he usually doesn't go past 41.5 at the absolute most. I'll just have to ask my normal doc what her thoughts are next week. He ALSO said that once I hit 39 weeks, they would normally allow me to opt for a scheduled induction if I'm ready to just be done (which would basically be in 2-2.5 weeks...I know...scary). It's just good to know that there are options and some flexibility...especially if Mom and Dad have to go back down to Houston.
So that's the story! Baby's got hiccups right now:-)
The big news is I'm 1 cm dilated and starting to thin out just slightly. The doctor said I 'should be good' for my appointment next week. So...hopefully she'll hang on until Mom and Dad get back from Houston. It's also good to know that the process is beginning! For those of you who don't know much about all this (myself included), beginning to dilate doesn't mean much. Mom said she was dilated from a month before I finally came along. We'll just have to wait and see if anything's changed by next week. The doctor also said he could actually push the head back from the cervix so she's definitely down there!
On the subject of induction. I did ask what was typical protocol for that. While I didn't see my normal doc today (and thus will have to ask her next week anyway) the doc I saw today said that standard practice is not to go past 42 weeks (December 9) but he usually doesn't go past 41.5 at the absolute most. I'll just have to ask my normal doc what her thoughts are next week. He ALSO said that once I hit 39 weeks, they would normally allow me to opt for a scheduled induction if I'm ready to just be done (which would basically be in 2-2.5 weeks...I know...scary). It's just good to know that there are options and some flexibility...especially if Mom and Dad have to go back down to Houston.
So that's the story! Baby's got hiccups right now:-)
Waiting...
Have to see a different doctor today because mine is out of town this weekend. I've seen him before...good guy, but is a little overobsessed about weight gain which is irritating because I will probably end up having gained more than I should but by, like, 5 pounds at most. Anyway, I've been uber-lucky when it comes to doctor's appointments being on time (except when Stephen used to come with me...which is why he was banned from appointments:-P). But of course, the doctor is in a delivery and then there are 2 people in front of me so I'll probably be awhile...sigh.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
37 Weeks!
'Ummmm...you're pregnant.' ~Stephen after taking the picture (and look at our awesome kitchen!)
How Are You Feeling?
Alrighty...so I'm going to take a few moments to vent on pregnancy woes. You have been warned.
Since pretty much the beginning of the pregnancy, I've been constantly asked, 'how are you feeling?'...like it's the common greeting. Not, 'hi' or anything normal like that, just straight into the 'how are you feeling?' question. For the longest time, I was kind of confused because I really felt fine. I mean, yeah I felt bigger and I'm not going to lie and say there weren't some interesting sounds coming from me each time I got off the couch. But overall, I felt great!
And then I hit the 35/36 week mark. Ummm...yeah. Definitely feeling VERY PREGNANT right now.
First off, as of today, I am officially 37 weeks which means 'FULL TERM'. A little bit scary, but definitely exciting and reassuring.
Sleep does not exist any more. Well, I slept alright last night, thank goodness. But most nights consist of about 5 trips to the bathroom, at least 2-3 (and usually more) Tums, shooting pains in my lower back, and acrobatics as I turn onto the other side (which involves flipping a body pillow under the covers but over my belly...not an easy feat). For the first time in my life, I find myself looking at the clock and WILLING for it to be later. Like...it's only 3AM? I could have sworn it was at least 5! I'm sure I would feel differently if I were still teaching or working a normal schedule and had to be up by a certain time, but I look forward to morning/daytime when I can rest a little better.
I also started swelling in my ankles and feet. I went out with coworkers on Saturday night and we went to a restaurant downtown. We parked close, but it was still a few blocks away and when I came home, my ankles were...well, there were no ankles! Actually, I scared Stephen because I was in the bathroom before bed and I saw my ankles (or lack there of) and said out loud, 'oh my god!' then...'my ankles are so swollen!'. When I came out and was washing my hands, Stephen said, 'ok, we need to make a rule that for the next few months, you don't say,'oh my god' when you're in the bathroom. Poor baby thought my water had broken or something! :-D
I also learned yesterday after sitting through 4 tutoring sessions at work that I'm going to have to start limiting those hours. I figured with pretty much sitting the whole time, so long as I wasn't being told to stay home, I could go as long as possible. While that's still the plan, I am definitely going to have to cut back some. After sitting for 4 hours, I got up out of my seat yesterday and felt like I had just ridden a horse! I guess the pressure from my belly on legs was making them ache? Still not sure, but something has changed. I was supposed to be there all day today, but Deb and Meena managed to convince me that probably wasn't the smartest idea so I moved my 1:30 and now will only have to been there for 4 hours...yay!
Well, I'm going to rest up for this evening. Baby Zoe needs some rest, too. We're hoping she doesn't surprise us and decides to wait until at least next weekend when my parents will be back in town! We'll see...
Since pretty much the beginning of the pregnancy, I've been constantly asked, 'how are you feeling?'...like it's the common greeting. Not, 'hi' or anything normal like that, just straight into the 'how are you feeling?' question. For the longest time, I was kind of confused because I really felt fine. I mean, yeah I felt bigger and I'm not going to lie and say there weren't some interesting sounds coming from me each time I got off the couch. But overall, I felt great!
And then I hit the 35/36 week mark. Ummm...yeah. Definitely feeling VERY PREGNANT right now.
First off, as of today, I am officially 37 weeks which means 'FULL TERM'. A little bit scary, but definitely exciting and reassuring.
Sleep does not exist any more. Well, I slept alright last night, thank goodness. But most nights consist of about 5 trips to the bathroom, at least 2-3 (and usually more) Tums, shooting pains in my lower back, and acrobatics as I turn onto the other side (which involves flipping a body pillow under the covers but over my belly...not an easy feat). For the first time in my life, I find myself looking at the clock and WILLING for it to be later. Like...it's only 3AM? I could have sworn it was at least 5! I'm sure I would feel differently if I were still teaching or working a normal schedule and had to be up by a certain time, but I look forward to morning/daytime when I can rest a little better.
I also started swelling in my ankles and feet. I went out with coworkers on Saturday night and we went to a restaurant downtown. We parked close, but it was still a few blocks away and when I came home, my ankles were...well, there were no ankles! Actually, I scared Stephen because I was in the bathroom before bed and I saw my ankles (or lack there of) and said out loud, 'oh my god!' then...'my ankles are so swollen!'. When I came out and was washing my hands, Stephen said, 'ok, we need to make a rule that for the next few months, you don't say,'oh my god' when you're in the bathroom. Poor baby thought my water had broken or something! :-D
I also learned yesterday after sitting through 4 tutoring sessions at work that I'm going to have to start limiting those hours. I figured with pretty much sitting the whole time, so long as I wasn't being told to stay home, I could go as long as possible. While that's still the plan, I am definitely going to have to cut back some. After sitting for 4 hours, I got up out of my seat yesterday and felt like I had just ridden a horse! I guess the pressure from my belly on legs was making them ache? Still not sure, but something has changed. I was supposed to be there all day today, but Deb and Meena managed to convince me that probably wasn't the smartest idea so I moved my 1:30 and now will only have to been there for 4 hours...yay!
Well, I'm going to rest up for this evening. Baby Zoe needs some rest, too. We're hoping she doesn't surprise us and decides to wait until at least next weekend when my parents will be back in town! We'll see...
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