Poll List

Per my last post, I put together all of the weight/gender guesses in one list.  I thought that might make things a bit easier to sort through when baby comes.  So, here they are:

Steph Henry:  Boy -- 5.1lbs
Ashley Hendricks:  Boy -- 5lbs 2oz
Sarah Poore:  Boy -- 5lbs 7oz
Kelley Hodges:  Girl -- 4lbs 12oz
Elaine Evanich:  Girl -- 4lbs 13oz
Beth Martin:  Girl -- 4lbs 13oz
Lisa Wilkinson:  Girl -- 5lbs
Becky Pugh:  Girl -- 5lbs 1oz, 19 in
Paula Ferguson:  Girl -- 5lbs 2oz
Nicole Rish:  Girl -- 5lbs 2oz
Judi Lucas:  Girl -- 5lbs 3oz, 18.5in
Eunice Houlihan:  Girl -- 5lbs 3oz, 19.5in
Heidi Davis:  Girl -- 5lbs 4oz
Brittany Brown:  Girl -- 5lbs 4oz
Crystal Dunn:  Girl -- 5lbs 5oz, 19in
Shawnna Pomeroy:  Girl -- 5lbs 6oz
Lee Harrison:  Girl -- 5lbs 8oz
Beth Riggs:  Girl -- 5lbs 9oz
Tero McCarty:  Girl -- 5lbs 10 oz, 18.5in
Audria Rausch:  Girl -- 6lbs, 18in

It's not too late to add your guesses. :-)  I'm surprised at all of the GIRL guesses!!!

Today, we had our regular OB visit, and it went well.  I got a couple of really cute pictures!

{Finally, another 3D!}

{Baby was playing with his/her feet!}

It amazes me how much baby looks like B.  I think with each child we have, the more they look like him! :-)

I've been adding a few final touches to the baby's room (diaper genie, wipe dispenser, etc), so it's almost complete.  I just need two 5x7 frames for a couple of pictures to add to the wall, and I think we'll be all set.  Oh, except for the baby's name on the wall.  I created a really neat design that I snatched off of Pinterest (LOVE that site!) using embroidery hoops and some snazzy fabric.  The hoops will surround the baby's name.  Right now, it looks kind of silly, but I might go ahead and post some pictures of the complete nursery anyway, because we won't have the name up until baby's here.  At that point, I'm sure I'll be busy snapping pictures of the baby and the boys instead of nursery walls. :-)

Speaking of names, I haven't really shared them.  We're still a little torn on the boy's name (I prefer another name, but like the one we've tentatively agreed on).  With Levi, we kept the name a secret until he was born for two reasons...1) we knew his gender, so we thought leaving the name a surprise would be fun and 2) we didn't want to hear negative comments about the name we had chosen (and loved!).  Anyway, we have a few girl names, but so far the front-runner is Libby Kathleen.  For a boy, we've tentatively agreed on Beau Anthony.  

Very excited to see this little person soon. :-)  The boys keep asking when the baby's coming out of Mommy's belly, so I know they're excited, too!  

We Made It!!

I am officially the most pregnant that I have *ever* been at 35 weeks and 1 day!  YAY!  Honestly, if you would have asked me if I thought I'd make it this far a month ago, I probably would have said no.  But, here we are!  Whew!

Due to the Holiday, our MFM appointment was this morning instead of Monday.  We had our regular ultrasound to check cord flow and to do a BPP.  Cord flow is still elevated and forward.  Baby performed well on BPP...had its legs crossed at the ankle and feet above the head (which, by the way, the u/s tech said is *the worst* position for determining gender...so no peeking here!).  What a little acrobat. :-)  Baby is 4lb 5oz, which is now less than the 5th percentile and about 3 weeks behind (baby was measuring in 40th percentile 4-5 weeks ago).  I saw a different MFM today since it's Tuesday.  He came in and checked blood flow in an artery in the baby's brain.  It was okay.  So, our plan is to see my OB on Thursday for an NST and BPP, and then go back next Tuesday to have all of the same tests done at MFM's office, including the brain artery blood flow check (which was new this week).  Doc said that if everything remains stable, we'll look at delivering between 37-38 weeks (considered full term) pending good lung development results from an amnio.  Obviously, if there's a change, then that time-frame will change, too.

Here's my "most pregnant" picture:

{35 Weeks Plus 1}

Seriously, how can there only be a 4lb baby in there?! :-)

I know *I* am growing!  Especially after eating a few too many of these the past couple of weeks:

{Nacho Fiesta from The Freeze}

So, in light of the gender guesses that have been thrown around lately by friends and family, I thought it would be fun to have a baby poll!  You can post BOTH your gender AND weight at birth guess either as a comment to this blog post or on Facebook (I'll link this post to my page), and whoever guesses BOTH correctly without going over on weight will win a special little surprise (No, it's not a Nacho Fiesta!). :-)  If you're out-of-state, don't worry...I can mail the surprise!  Let the guessing begin!!

Hope everyone enjoyed their Memorial Day and long weekend!  :-)

34 Weeks!

We are 8 1/2 months pregnant today!  I honestly cannot believe I'm still pregnant, but I'm ecstatic! :-)  This is bedrest week 4, and I only lasted 3 weeks with Luke, so we're doing great!  I'm not going to lie...bedrest is not easy.  I'm struggling with not being as involved with the boys' care as I am used to.  Some days, I feel like I don't see them at all except for bedtime.  We're very, very lucky that we have so many people in their lives that love them so much!  I just miss them. :-)  Definitely not complaining as I know this is what's best for baby right now, and it's only temporary...just being honest. :-)

Late last week, our photographer came out and took some maternity shots of me in all of my pregnant glory. :-)  This is the first (and last) time I've ever had maternity pictures taken, so it was pretty bittersweet.  Our photographer was actually hospitalized earlier in the week with complications with her own pregnancy, so for her to come all of the way out to our house to capture this moment in time meant a whole lot to us!  THANK YOU, BRIDGETTE!

A couple of random, fun facts...I am craving these like crazy:

And, my freckles (yeah, I have freckles...I know, I know...I didn't know I had them, either!) are very brilliant!  Apparently, something during pregnancy makes the pigmentation in your skin a tad darker.  Same reason that some women get the line down the middle of their bellies...or find birth marks they never knew they had (remember my post about the one on my belly?!).  

We had an appointment in Indy this morning, and everything went well.  Baby passed its BPP...YAY!  The u/s tech clarified what she was looking for today:  two big movements, two little movements (a wiggle of the toes, for example), heart rate, fluid levels (measured 12...lower, but good), and breathing.  She also checked cord flow (still forward, YAY!) and cord pressure (still high, BOO!).  She also pointed out that baby has hair, which the tech in Kokomo also showed us about a week ago. :-)  It was neat that two different techs saw it...it'll be interesting to see just how much hair this little one has!  Good lord knows I have the heartburn! :-)  No weight check for baby this week, although I'm going to try to squeeze one out of my Thursday appointment!  We're just taking things week-by-week.  Doc said, "we can't put the baby back in once its out".  He's right.  As long as my body and baby are cooperating, baby's better in than out!  My BP was 121/60 at the office today...how's that for cooperating?!  Those are *insanely awesome* #"s for me! :-)

Here we are at 34 weeks:

And for comparison's sake, 33 weeks with Levi:

{Big 'ol Bare Belly!  You're welcome! :-)}

For those of you who are keeping track (or, if you aren't, I'm going to tell you anyway!), next Monday we'll be 35 weeks, which is the gestation that Levi was born at.  He was a take-home baby with *no steroid shots*, so if we make it that far, that will be AWESOME!  This baby has had steroid shots, so baby has that much more of an edge!  Week 37 is considered full term, and that's only 3 weeks away!!!  

We are definitely hanging in there!  Bake, baby, bake! :-)

Hope everyone has a great week. :-)  I'll post a quick update on Thursday's appointment via Facebook.  Thanks for checking in on us!

33 weeks

Today, we are 33 weeks pregnant!

We had our MFM appointment in Indy, and overall it went well.  We left knowing more, and with a game plan for the next (hopefully) several weeks!

Baby's growth has definitely slowed down.  It has fallen from the 40% to the 16% (and actually, according to my chart, it's less than that, but we'll use MFM's!).  Baby weighs 3lb 11oz.  Otherwise, baby looks great...passed the BPP with an 8/8 (AWESOME!).  Amniotic fluid was a 15 (8-24 is good...so perfect!).  Cord flow is forward (good), but cord pressure is high (not good).  That means that basically baby is having to work harder than it should.  The game plan is to continue seeing MFM for these special u/s' every week (Mondays) as well as see my regular OB for NST's and BPP's (Thursdays) until delivery.  Delivery will be when cord flow becomes absent, or worse, reverses, or amniotic fluid is too low, or baby shows signs of distress.  We hope that doesn't happen!

Here's baby today:

{Face shot, with a little hand to the left}

{Profile}

Thank you for all of the thoughts and prayers and positive support!  We really appreciate everyone thinking of us. :-)  And a special thanks to my good friend, Nicole, for hauling me to Indy today!  

Hope everyone has a great week!

8 Months!

Yay!  I can't believe we're 8 months pregnant!  {This is me, doing a happy dance!}

{32 weeks}

We've officially been on bedrest for 2 weeks now, and it seems to have been helping keep the BP down.  Thank goodness!  I spend my days watching movies (thanks, Nicole!), working on Nursery projects (from bed), and browsing the net for Nursery ideas and things for the kiddos.  I get up for short spurts to keep my sanity. :-)  Not complaining, though!  This is much more preferable to hospital bedrest or an early baby!

We've added a couple of things to the Nursery:

I purchased the elephant figurines a few weeks ago, but they now have found their place in the room. :-)  The Nursery is coming together, and it's about 90% complete!

Quick update from today's appointment:

The baby only gained an oz this week.  Typical weight gain/week is 8oz or so, although the Nurse today told me that's more common in the last month of pregnancy.  Either way, baby weighs 3lbs 10oz, which is 1.5 weeks to 2 weeks behind.  Otherwise, the u/s looked great.  The NST wasn't fabulous, so I had to go over to Labor and Delivery for a few hours of extra monitoring.  My OB talked to my MFM, and he was able to log in and see baby's monitor strips and advise.  He said that the extra monitoring looked more reassuring, and that he wanted to see me on Monday afternoon for a Level 3 ultrasound to check cord flow and more detail than they can see in Kokomo.  So, we'll go from there!  I was really, really hoping that baby had gained more weight (especially since *I* had gained 2lbs!), but let's just hope he/she has a growth spurt this week!

Doctor's words:  "Nothing looks ominous right now, but it just doesn't look as good as we'd like."  Still praying for a couple more weeks. :-)

Hope everyone has a great Friday, and a wonderful Mother's Day weekend!

31 weeks

Monday, we hit 31 weeks!  I've been resting, resting, resting!  That means that everyone else around me has been busy. :-)

My brother has been busy cooking meals (did I ever mention he's an *awesome* cook?).  Yeah, I'm gonna start porkin' up...I can just feel it!  Mom, Dad, Mother-in-Law, and Father-in-Law have also pitched in to help pick up the boys from the sitter's and visit with them until B gets home.  Of course, Moms always have a way of making sure things are cleaned up and kids are fed, so not only are the boys taken care of on that front, but B and I are (and the house is), too!  The boys' Aunts and our good friends have been helping, too...playing with the boys and sending entertainment/goodies our way. :-)

My Grandma came over and finished the baby's bedding:

You can kinda get a sneak peek at the wall artwork above baby's crib.  It's not finished because 1) we don't know baby's name, yet, and 2) I ran out of embroidery hoops. :-)  I'll finish after baby's arrival, and I'll do a Nursery post then.  I've been stealing *lots* of ideas from websites and, of course, Pinterest!

Last weekend, Mom had planned a Sprinkle for the baby, but it was postponed due to my being on bedrest.  We still got some goodies, though, along with a couple of really sweet cards!

{Thank you, Lindsey & Crew and Aunt Kelley & Uncle Jason!}

Bedrest has been doing my body good, I think.  My BP tends to run around 130's/80's - 140's/90's as long as I'm lying down.  I do notice an increase when I get up to go pee, shower, get food, etc, but it comes back down after I lie back down.  My instructed "go to the hospital" BP is 160/110.  We're not there, yet, so that's good!

Today, we had an NST and ultrasound.  The ultrasound was like a combination of a BPP (click for explanation) and growth scan.  Everything looked great!  Baby was active, practicing its breathing, and gaining weight!  Baby's weight is now 3lbs 9oz, and the ultrasound tech even showed us that baby has hair!!  It was swaying in the amniotic fluid.  How cute. :-)  The plan is to go back next Thursday for another NST and ultrasound.  I will keep baking baby as long as:

1)  baby's growing and passing NST's

2)  we have amniotic fluid

3)  my BP doesn't go spastic (and/or protein)

4)  I don't go into labor (which isn't too likely!)

Here is growing baby (and Momma!) at 31 weeks:

Our guilty pleasure of the week:

Lemon Cheesecake Icecream from East End...MAN is it good! :-)

Hope everyone is having a great week...it's almost FRIDAY!!!