*The baby is now ... 4.5 pounds. Pineapple!*How I'm feeling: It's the last week of the long days at work! Whahoo! Hopefully returning to a normal, 8-hour day will improve my back issues/restlessness. Other than that, I'm still doing really well. I'm usually pretty uncomfortable by the end of the day, but I'm still sleeping pretty well and am staying active.
*Physical differences from last week: Nothing really to speak of.
*What's been on my mind: It's stock-up time! All of a sudden, I realized that we could potentially have a baby in just a few weeks. It sort of lit a fire in me, and I spent the weekend stocking up on all the basics (or at least, what I think are the basics). More on that in an upcoming post.
We're sort of in the home stretch at this point. All of a sudden, I have a million questions for my doctor again, after having several visits where we didn't have much to talk about.
Want to know what is on Mike's mind? One thing and one thing only: the car seat. The man will not rest easy until that darn thing is properly installed and inspected. (Thank you, Daddy Boot Camp.)
*What I'm looking forward to: Putting the finishing touches on Ryan's room. We only need a few more things, but we're waiting until after the baby shower at Mike's office on Friday (another thing I'm looking forward to!) before we finish buying stuff off our registry.
*Other random thoughts: We had our child birth class on Saturday. I was expecting to leave feeling overwhelmed and wondering how I would keep all the information straight. But in reality... I didn't feel like I learned much. I guess by the time you're 33 weeks pregnant, you've read and considered most of the important points. Even Mike said he didn't get a whole lot of new information. We did practice some "relaxation" techniques for a bit, but we really glossed over it and it was kind of cheesy, so it was hard to take it seriously and benefit from it.
I did leave with a couple more questions for my doctor about what we would do in certain situations, and it did get me rethinking the *epidural/no epidural/some other kind of pain medication* debate again. But really, I don't think I'm going to be able to make a definitive decision on that until I'm in labor and truly know what I'm dealing with.
honestly i never saw the point in a birth class. Women have been birthing since the dawn of time, you dont have to be told how to. your body knows how. dont let anyone tell you "how". go with your gut. i learned after kaitlyn that most women ( wih no complications) can birth naturally, without an epidural and do it without being coaxed. yeah they all yell at you and get in your face on how to push and what not, but guess what, when that baby wants out, he will come out, with or without calculated pushing. i had no epidrual with kaitlyn ( and a failed one with Cara), you can feel them come down on their own. pushing is more a releif than a necessity. i do say this. i did well until i got to about 8 cm. thats when it gets rough. you wont want people touching you or talking to you, you kind of draw into your self. its better that way. if you can concentrate on your own you can do it better.
ReplyDeleteand make sure your dr knows ahead of time ( as does mike) what you want. if you want there to be a point where you tell them to shut up, make sure they know thats what they need to do. nothing is more irritating in labor than 5 people telling you what to do when all you want is for everyone to shut up and get out of your face.
also i recomend requesting that someone else help you hold your legs. to me with kaitlyn this was the worst. the dr yelling at me telling me i had to pull them back myself. you are a sweaty mess and will lose your grip. it is frustrating. i made sure with kyleigh my midwife knew i wanted help then. she knew i wanted to let the baby come down on her own, and not forcibely push her out.
too bad the little booger decided to flip butt first and be a csection!
also, have a plan for that in case it happens. make sure you know how it will go down in the off chance it does. i never CONSIDERED id have to have one. i never asked. its not like on tv where everyone is calm... i was terrified. it was territory i was unfamiliar with because i never expected it.
birth hurts but in all honestly alot of things hurt much worse ( been there!), and as soon as you have that baby in your arms you start to immediately forget the pain.
I. love. your. bump.
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You are one fit and sexy mama! I knew before they checked me that it was time to go! I did enjoy class because it was once p/week and I liked the stories other people had. Combined with the hospital tour, I was less nervous about the new experience. That is also when I became against the epidural. I was so wigged out 6 hrs after my water breaking (freakin about a c-section)that I did the nubain, just so I could chillax. Everyone has their story, and soon you will have yours! Everyone goes through a different way, but all want the healthy baby in arm in the end. Much love and luck to you and Mike!
ReplyDeleteWe were originally signed up for a once a week class (a couple hours for like 4 weeks), and I was really looking forward to it! I was hoping we'd get a chance to get to know some of the other parents and whatnot. But that class got canceled, so we had to do the marathon all-day class, which didn't quite hold the same appeal, ha.
ReplyDeleteI'm usually the type of person who likes to be in control... or at least know exactly what to expect. But I know everyone's birth experiences are totally different. No one has a baby the exact same way as another person. So I've learned as much as I can, and I'll just have to go with the flow and figure it out along the way! Of course, I'm *hoping* for a 2-hour labor and 5 minutes of pushing with little or no pain. ;)
i hope you get your wish!
ReplyDeletei had a shot of nubain with kaitlyn ( no epi ) and they gave it to me, it felt nice, like doing a shot, then they broke my water and it completely had no effect after that ( 10 minutes later).
and not only does everyone have a baby differently, the same person can have totally different experiences with each baby. i swear birth is the most un-controllable thing there is. lol. you can try to make plans but sometimes they go through and sometimes they dont.
Cara didnt hurt bad, but was hard to get out ( she had that darned hand up by her face), even though she was very small i tore 3 times. Kaitlyn was fast but hurt like hell( she was back labor) in the final stages...she was bigger but i didnt tear at all. ( plus i wanted to kill my OB which didnt help), but both the actual labors were similar. same length and all. felt fine and in control till around 8 cm then my body kind of panicked as i felt less control and that really bad pressure where you KNOW they are moving down. oddest sensation ever i might add.
Kyleighs was completely different, since i came in in labor and got the epidural relatively early on because of the kidney stents, i felt nothing almost till 10 cm and then they were not even going to have me push, just let her come out, i didnt even feel i needed to push until they were wheeling me into surgery after they realized she was booty first.
contractiosn are the most painful part of labor, but controllable on your part ...the pushing is more of a releif...since the pressure is insane...i will say that the head coming out is the worst part though. once the head is out and before the head is out it is not terrible. its just that exact moment-it's no bueno...there is a reason its called the ring of fire. it burns. like hell. but they just slip right out after that big old noggin is out.
i hope you get our 2 hour labor. lol. you probably wont even know you are in labor at first. or you will but the hospital will tell you you are not. lol. thats how it was with kaitlyn and kyleigh. i was in labor at home for probably a whole evening and night, then actually in ACTIVE labor for about 8ish hours in the hospital with Cara and Kaitlyn, and closer to 10 with Kyleigh. Cara i swear i was in labor for about a week before i was induced.
Seester! You're supposed to tell me that child birth is all puppies and rainbows and sunshine!! Ring of fire = *lalalalalaIcan'thearyou*!
ReplyDeleteI've already informed Kris that if her birth is difficult and/or painful in any way, she is to lie to me until after I have Ryan. I don't think she has technically agreed to that yet, though. ;)
no no no....if you go into it that way its scary when it ISNT puppies and rainbows. lol. if you go into it with a sense of what its actually like, its not so scary :) you know what to expect so you can brace for it and therefore tolerate it better...at least thats how i decided to go into it. my mindset:" this is going to hurt like hell at some point, but it wont be forever and i get a sweet baby at the end". makes it much easier to accept the not so pleasant parts as they occur. sorry to scare you, that was not my intent seester!!! im just trying to say its not that bad. there are much much worse things...and you dont get the cute prize at the end. lol.
ReplyDeleteHaha, I was just kidding. ;) I know it's going to be hard. I know it's going to be painful. I've prepared myself as much as I possibly can, and that's really all I can do! I've read tons of birth stories, have done tons of research... now I just have to wait to create my own experience.
ReplyDeleteexactly! It is what it is, the end result is all that matters anyhow :)~
ReplyDeleteand i just noticed under the baby weight it says 4-5 lbs...you could almost have a kid the size Cara was at birth in there right now. she was such a peanut.
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