Happy Halloween!

I was really happy that Henry has his own birthday apart from Halloween. This way his birthday can be a special day for him and Halloween can be a special day for both the kids.

Henry did have a costume, as you can see. He was a bat. We put it on for pictures and walked over to neighbor Cindy's house. That was the extent of his TOTing. Isabel gave him one of her TOT bags to borrow and carried it for him.

His Second Day

We left the hospital first thing in the morning. As long as everyone checks out fine they allow you to leave after one night when it is a subsequent birth. And when they start coming in at 6am to draw blood & take vitals, whoc wants to go through that a second morning and not to mention the uncomfortable bed and the yucky hospital food. So, I was very thanksful we were able to come home.

Grandma & Grandpa M. were still there watching Isabel and stayed for a few more hours so that mommy, daddy & Henry could take a nap and big sister Isabel was still entertained and well cared for. Grandpa M finally got a chance to hold Henry today.

Here is Henry sleeping in the bassinett in our room. He is covered in a blanket that was a gift from our friends Lori, John & Rachael.

Here is Henry as we are about to leave the hospital. Since we had the Suburban with us, we used the carseat that fit in there (the largest one for an infant had to go in here because it wouldn't fit in our compact cars). Anyways, this carseat is borrowed from mommy's friend Rebecca (Thanks Rebecca!) He went home wearing one of the sleepers that our dear friend Kendra has sent for him and his pumpkin hat from the hospital.

More Birth Day Pictures

Grandma & Grandpa M. came to visit Henry twice today. They are watching Isabel while we are at the hospital, so they all came together today. They bought hm a cute little drummer outfit as a birthday present. Isabel is excited to have grandma & grandpa with her today (they took her out for lunch & on a field trip to Cabelas) but she sure misses mommy & daddy.

This is Henry's first sponge bath. Since the bath didn't occur until after his circumcision (we did a Plasti-bell circumcision) we had to do a sponge bath, which is just fine.

Our friends Beth & Carrie came to the hospital to visit us. We are leaving in the morning, only staying one night, so we were surprised anyone was able to come visit us at all. It was very nice.

We also recieved a beautiful bouquet of flowers from our friends Lori, John & Rachael. That was a nice surprise too. I have such wonderful friends who absolutly spoil me.

Welcome Henry!

Later on I will get around to typing up his birth story. But the short version is that contractions started about 8pm, we went into the hospital around 10:30pm and he was born at 2:47am without the use of any drugs at all.

Isabel came to visit Henry twice today. She is very excited and loves his very much, but she also misses having her mommy & daddy with her.

Getting his feet printed. That ink will take a few washings to get off. He has long feet.

Daddy & Henry hanging out watching hockey. Isabel was never one to just sleep on daddy's chest while he watched a sports game. Even if this is the only time it ever happens (which hopefully it isn't), daddy finally has a baby to sleep on his chest & watch sports with him.

Timing Contractions

We are timing contractions using this website. It's quite handy and much easier to use that putting everything in an Excel spreadsheet which is what I was doing before.

They have been pretty consistent at 4-5 minute apart for a minute a piece for about 45 minutes, then they went to 6 minutes apart for about 1-1.5 minutes for the last half hour, but those ones kicked up the intensity a notch.

We have my in-laws on the way and put my neighbor on high alert, in case we have to leave before the in-laws can get here. And we called the hospital to give them a heads up as well.

I have been updating on Facebook and not on here like I did with Isabel. We will probably go in to the hospital soon.

40 Weeks - TODAY IS THE DUE DATE

Well, we are at the due date & I am still pregnant. I have an ob appt this afternoon, so I will update this at that point to let you know where I am at.

Dialation: 3.5, maybe 4 cm (improved from 3)
Effacement: 75% (still!)
Head/Pelvic Position: -1 (still)
Heartrate: 145/150bpm
She said he is definitly under 8 pounds at this point.

Next appt is made for next Tuesday. I am so bummed to make this appt. Actually, even after a nap, I am still annoyed by the lack of improvement and just want to cry. She said she won't push induction, but at 42 weeks she will have to induce, just FYI for me.

I'm annoyed my crotch feels like it is going to fall out. I'm annoyed I have to go pee every hour. I am annoyed I can't eat garlic yet. I am annoyed that I waddle when I walk. I am annoyed that everything takes so much energy when it should be easy. I am annoyed I keep getting up at 4/5/6 am. I am annoyed I need to keep my house cleaned in case it happens at any moment and the kid can make it a disaster in 10 seconds. I'm annoyed I can'thave a bloody mary or glass of wine. I'm annoyed.

H1N1 Vaccine for Pregnant Women

Wow! It is such a controversial subject. It seems like it is split into 2 very opinionated groups of yes, you need to get it and no, don't get it. Everyone else falls into the "I don't know enough about it to decide."

I didn't actually think I would have to decide if I wanted to get it as a pregnant woman because it didn't seem like it would even be available to pregnant women until after I delivered. But today my doctor's nurse called and said they got a shipment in that was only going to pregnant women and to get in right away to get one (before I deliver & they run out.)

Honestly, I still don't know how I really feel about it. I am torn between both sides. The media has scared me enough to think that I need to get it, but on the flip side I don't feel enough testing has been done to know enough about the effects (long-term & short-term) of the vaccine.

Of course, I get this same message on the same day we were supposed to go to a Halloween party at which 2 kids would be there that got their diagnosis' of H1N1 4 & 5 days ago. The CDC recommends them staying away from other kids 7 days, up to 10 days for young kids. Well, we had not been around them in a couple of weeks, so we were not exposed to them during their incubation period and the mom said that the clinic told them as long as they were fever free for 24 hours they could go out, this is the same clinic that requires their workers to stay home for 7 days if they get the diagnosis. I am not about to chance it seeing we are healthy so far and have not been exposed to them.

I am sure we have been exposed to other people with it, but not in the type of setting (yet) where the kids are sharing toys, toys that some kids might stick in their mouths. And even if Isabel doesn't put toys in her mouth she could touch it and then stick her hands in her mouth when feeding herself a snack. Not worth it to me to go to a costume party (see the costume I made this morning below).

Anyways, I guess pregnant women have a weakened immune system as it is (even if I am healthy and have been this pregnancy) so that they don't reject the fetus and remains weakened for a couple weeks afterwards as their body recovers from the birth.

They do have thermisol-free vaccines and the round our clinic has is that kind. And while I could give birth this afternoon and he would not receive any of the benefits, my body still produces antibodies in response that he will recieve in the breastmilk.

They also say that healthy adults older than 60 probably are already immune to it because they were exposed to it as children and developed anitbodies against it. Although, my MIL got it and she should fall into this age group. Maybe she wasn't exposed to it as a child.

I don't want to be trying to recover from delivery and have an infant and a preschooler and deal with the flu in our house. And while I think there needs to be more testing done on the long term effects, the reality is that if people do die from H1N1, it has been those with weakened immune systems and not all of them have underlying health conditions. I understand that more people die from the seasonsal flu each year (so far), but we have only had the swine flu around during the spring, this is really the first big season of H1N1 and we don't know how many people may die from it or not.

I decided to get the vaccine. Daddy was a big supporter of me getting it to provide a level of protection to baby boy & myself. I did get the seasonal flu vaccine about 3.5 weeks ago. And to be honest, it could be that I have a strong immune system but I have not had the seasonal flu (only stomach flu which is not what the vaccine is for) since I started recieving yearly flu shots. The last time I had the seasonal flu it was almost 12 years ago and I am not sure how much longer before that.

Pregnant Nun

We have a costume party for MOMS Club to go to this afternoon and I needed to be creative with my maternity clothes. So, a pregnant nun it is. This morning I raided my sewing & craft boxes and came up with some black fabric, white fabric, white ribbon, white cord, velcro, heat-n-bond, gold pipe cleaners, gold paint & popsicle sticks.

I think it would be funny if I went into labor and had to wear this costume to the hospital.

Comparison Photo

So, this was the very first photo I took of my pregnant belly. At the time I could totally see the bump and thought I was showing so much.

Well, now I look at it and I don't think so much.

I thought it would be fun to compare with a picture from today wearing the same outfit.

Hopefully this is the last pregnant belly shot I take.

Annoyances - Things People Say

You know there are a couple things that annoy me right now, the first is people telling me to get some rest. I want to scream at them in my tired-state "Don't you think I want to get some rest? Do you think I enjoy being up at 4am with contractions and pains in my hips & back?" Of course, I have cleaned up what the thoughts running through my head are because when I think it to myself, I drop the F-bomb a few times to emphasize my annoyance. I probably would not be typing up a list of annoyances at 5am if I could rest.

Another thing that annoys me is when people say, "It's better having him inside longer than outside." Seriously, who says that shit? Do they say it because their kids are really that bad that they would rather shove them back in. I know things weren't rainbows and bunnies with Isabel and there were times I wanted to shove her back in. But really, like keeping him in there for 1 or 2 or 7 more days is going to change much. It does not prolong the inevitable. He will eventually come out and we will go through all the same ages & stages, just one or two or five days earlier. And that's those many more days I am not irritable and annoyed by this same crap. I will still have to go through all those first days, weeks, months even if he comes a little early or on time (late is seriously not an option at this point - and you don't joke with a woman in her last two weeks of pregnancy about going late - it's really not funny and you may find yourself getting injured if she can conjure up the energy & speed to do something about it, at the very least you are in for a severe tongue lashing.

Another thing people say that I find annoying is "He'll come when he's ready" or "Don't rush things". Either these people have never been pregnant before or they have severe amnesia. If you google natural ways to induce labor you will find pages & pages upon recommendations and suggestions and even more pages of women asking "How can I induce labor at home?" All those things wouldn't be there if thousands (maybe millions of women) were not ready to make him come when they were ready. It's not like any of us are trying to induce pre-term labor. We're just done in those last couple weeks.

Want another one? How about people refusing to provide you with a little bit of entertainment by trying to correctly guess youe due date by saying the same thing as above "He'll come when he is ready?" Well, no shit sherlock! But what day do you guess he will be ready? And don't say anything late unless you want me to curse you. It's just fun & games people and it makes me fantasize that maybe the friend/family member who picked that day has some kind of mystical
power that can predict such things.

This next one doesn't bother me so much anymore because when you are in the last month of pregnancy, you can't help look huge & pregnant. But I really find it annoying when people tell me I don't look pregnant or I don't look that big. In my head I am screaming "What?!?!?! Have I always looked like a fat cow with a beer belly?" Maybe it was because I was cursed/blessed with a long torso, but it seems to take much longer for people to say I looked pregnant because the baby has a lot of vertical room inside me to grow and doesn't need to protrude out too early. And even when I thought I was showing (& had to move into maternity clothes) so much earlier with the second one I still got the "You don't look (very) pregnant." Not sure if that is just a comment or supposed to be a compliment, but it feels like a slap in the face, like you are really saying "You always looked thick to me."

Ok -time to go make some tea and take a bath (should be interesting to see how I can or can't recline in there) and see if either provides some soothing relief so I can go back to bed for a couple hours, because I do want that rest (you just don't have to tell me about it!)

4AM Mornings

Did I have these 4AM mornings with Isabel? I can't remember, but 4AM seems to be when my body just can't handle it anymore.

Today it's not contractions, it's that pelvis has shifted yet again and I can tell he dropped more. He has to be fully engaged at this point. It's weird how I can tell when he drops to the next position, but there are just some things I can feel. I get more of a waddle as I try to figure out how to walk again with the shifting, my pelvic region just aches from the stretching for a couple days, sleeping on my side becomes uncomfortable and intolerable as the pressue points have changed yet again. And now sleeping on my back is IMPOSSIBLE the way everything is positioned I have to be propped up, sitting straight up to not be in pain from having things crushed.

My last on-back position was more like 45-degree angle, where as now it's a 90-degree. You can't sleep that way. You just can't.

This really sucks because I am tired and there are no contractions (like there were for a few days in a row during these wee hours). And the last thing I feel like doing when I am tired is walking around to move those aching muscles.

In other related news, I did have my bloody show yesterday afternoon. It seemed to coincide with him dropping more. So, I imagine things are progressing and it won't be much longer. In fact, daddy has picked today at 11:30pm. He picked Isabel's birthdate and missed the exact time by 2 hours. So, considering the date was right at least and the time was close, I figure if he "knows" something we should be having a baby this evening.

39 Week OB Appt

This morning was my 39 week OB appt. Here are the stats:
Dialtion: 3cm
Effacement: 75%
Head position: -1
Heartrate: 160bpm (faster than normal for him to which she commented "that might indicate that things are cooking down there".)

Finally lost my plug this afternoon. I lost it much earlier with Isabel, but I guess this doesn't really indicate much of anything.

She said she would be surprised if I made it to my appt next week Wednesday (40 weeks that day), but seriously what do doctors know. Actually, this was the first time she ever indicated she thought something might happen in a certain time frame. Up to this point she has been more like, "You gotta ways to go." Although she told me right away when she came that she had expected a call for her to come to hospital this past week.

39 Weeks

Tomorrow is 39 weeks. Decided to take the weekly picture before bed tonight.

Last night was a rough night. Contractions started around 8:30 and finally around 9:30 I figured I should start timing. They were lasting 1.5-2 minutes each and about 8 minutes apart. I kept a spreadsheet tracking them for 2 hours, but then started getting tired and decided to see if they would keep up if I took a bath. So, I took a half hour bath and they continued. Went to bed and they still continued. Not really changing, just remaining consistent.

Daddy & I stayed up and talked a while and then called it quits around 12:30. They didn't seem too strong that I couldn't sleep through them with minimal distraction. They continued but had lessened in intensity since the bath. But around 2:15am I was awoken by one that was pretty intense. These seemed stronger than earlier ones, and were waking me up about every 15-20 minutes. After 2 hours of this, I decided to get up and start timing once again. Everytime I had one during those 2 hours I couldn't sleep through it. But then it seemed that I had one more after I woke and they stopped. I waited for a while and then went back to bed around 5:15 for 2 hours until I had to get up (later than usual) to get Isabel ready & off to school.



I made this for Isabel the other day using an iron-on transfer that I created. She has seen it and is very excited to wear it to the hospital when baby boy is born.

Delayed Announcements

Well, with FB & email & the blog, people are going to know right away anyways and have lots of pictures to see, plus we don't have the money to send out pictures & announcements in November and then send our Christmas cards (w/ pictures & letter) too in December. So, in case you are wondering (or are asked), they will be sent together. The Christmas card will include a picture of baby boy and our family (that's the plan anyways) and have the details an annoucement would have. I guess this year I will have to revise my xmas card list, as some people have been removed over the years but they would be someone I would be expected to send the annoucement too.

Coincidence Guess

Well, I made another guess on the baby poll, but using coincidences.

I figured if both dad & sister were born on the 20th of a month and at 10-ish (grandma, correct me if daddy was not born at 10-something, that's what time he thought he was born at).

So, I put in another guess of baby boy being born on 20th (Tuesday, nobody had that pick) at 10-ish. So, we'll see. Oct. 20th happens to be daddy's half birthday.

On Thursday, Isabel talked to baby boy and she said he said he was going to come out the next day. By the end of the day when she was going to bed I asked her to talk to him again and ask if he was still coming out or changed his mind to a different day. She said he changed his mind because he was scared. I asked her what he was scared of and she said, "He's scared of coming down & out your gina." So, there you have it. She said he said he will be coming on Wednesday now.

Everyone guessed boy, but here is the rundown of the rest:

My Baby Dream
8 lbs 10 ozs
21 in
Oct 12, 12:00 am
the dream it was 12 or 14 and 20.75 (rounded up)

Rebecca A
7 lbs 11 ozs
20 in
Oct 12, 1:40 pm


Trudi O
7 lbs 4 ozs
21 in
Oct 13, 2:00 am

mommy
8 lbs 0 ozs
21 in
Oct 14, 3:30 pm

Tammy
7 lbs 9 ozs
21 in
Oct 15, 2:20 am

Isabel
10 lbs 0 ozs
21 in
Oct 16, 6:30 pm

David
10 lbs 12 ozs
23 in
Oct 17, 11:23 am

Caitlin
8 lbs 2 ozs
21 in
Oct 18, 4:31 am

Tony
8 lbs 4 ozs
21 in
Oct 18, 10:23 am


Carrie
7 lbs 14 ozs
21 in
Oct 19, 7:30 am

Melissa
8 lbs 2 ozs
20 in
Oct 19, 11:43 pm

Mommy (again - coincidence guess)
8 lbs 0 ozs
22 in
Oct 20, 10:30 am

Lori
7 lbs 8 ozs
21 in
Oct 22, 10:00 am

daddy
8 lbs 9 ozs
22 in
Oct 23, 11:30 pm

Gary
8 lbs 7 ozs
22 in
Oct 24, 6:00 am

Beth
8 lbs 6 ozs
19 in
Oct 24, 6:45 am

Kendra
9 lbs 11 ozs
19 in
Oct 25, 2:00 am

Nicole
8 lbs 6 ozs
21 in
Oct 25, 2:00 am


Auntie Phanie
8 lbs 14 ozs
22 in
Oct 26, 3:26 am

Candy
8 lbs 6 ozs
21 in
Oct 26, 6:30 am


Skye
8 lbs 8 ozs
20 in
Oct 27, 6:00 am


Mary
9 lbs 2 ozs
22 in
Oct 28, 3:00 am

Trudy S
8 lbs 7 ozs
21 in
Oct 28, 5:10 am

Jody
8 lbs 8 ozs
21 in
Oct 28, 8:08 am

Sara
7 lbs 8 ozs
20 in
Oct 30, 8:24 pm

Rebecca P
7 lbs 7 ozs
21 in
Oct 31, 12:31 am

Luanne
9 lbs 6 ozs
21 in
Oct 31, 6:00 pm

Cheri:)
7 lbs 10 ozs
21 in
Nov 1, 11:23 am

Brian
7 lbs 0 ozs
20 in
Nov 2, 4:35 am

38 Weeks

So, my appt yesterday didn't show too much progress over last week:
* 3 cm (same)
* -2 head down position (same)
* 50% effaced (improvement over 20%)
* 140 bpm

That's about it. I am ready to be done. Due to him crushing internal organs I can't sleep on my back (gives me immediate pain) and after about 3 hours of sleeping on my sides that gets painful as well because of the the pelvis bones shifting and placing weight differently on my hips & muscles. So, twice already I have slept for 3 hours, got up to pee and then couldn't get back to sleep because it was uncomfortable, so I get up & come check the computer (of course, no one else is around at 3pm) and then take a long, hot bath to help provide some relief & comfort and then back to bed for another 3 hours. I need a nap (obviously for not longer than 3 hours either.)

Baby Boy's First Costume

I let Isabel & daddy paint my baby belly. We were painting pumpkins this afternoon and daddy said my belly was big & round like a pumpkin, so I said they could paint it. I think they both got a kick out of painting in my belly button.

Last night I took Isabel to Target to shop for a present for her to give her baby brother. She picked out a bib, a onesie, & a toy to hang on stroller, carseat, whatever. She was really determined that she buy him a new bib with words on it.

Don't forget to make your guess

Just a reminder! It's getting close to those first due date guesses. I will be closing the game early next week, probably Monday or Tuesday (first guesses are for Monday).

37 Weeks

Well, today is 37 weeks and I had an OB appt today. I am 3cm dilated and 20% effaced. His heartbeat is 145 beats strong and I am measuring right where I should be. Every time she measures me she tells me I have such a long torso and tells me she is used to measuring stomach that go way out and then she tells me, "I tell you that every time, don't I?" So, I guess the long torso that Isabel has came from me. I have always struggled buying shirts because they tend to not cover as much of my stomach as I would like. Oh well.

Anyways, my doctor is a female with kids of her own, so she doesn't say "Any day now" or "You're getting close" like my male doctor said. So, I appreciate her not getting my hopes up that it will be sooner rather than later.

I forgot to ask what head position in the birth canal he was.

Week 36 OB Appt

Cervix: 2cm dilated
Effacement: 0-10%
Head Position: Down, -2
Flu Shot: Check
Group B Strep Test: Done, Results to come next week (they get shipped out to a lab)
Heartrate: Still a strong 140


The above results are pretty much the same as where I was with Isabel when I was at the very last day of my 37th week. So, he continues to be about 1.5 weeks earlier at things. So, we'll see if that continues to the end.

My doc decided she wanted to see me next week and even though she is scheduled to be at the hospital all week she took one afternoon to see her OB patients. So, I don't need to wait a week & a half to see her. I will be back next week Wednesday.