The Waiting Game

Sorry I am a bit late in posting. I really really thought I would have had this baby by now. Being 3cm last week, and 75% effaced...contractions coming and going. But Sylvia was sorta on call on the weekend, depending on when, so I think my body just stopped, knowing I wasn't guaranteed to have her at the birth. I did see Sylvia yesterday, and there was not much change from last week. My GBS swab came back and thankfully it was negative. She did do a stretch and sweep, and I was uncomfortably contracting for the evening, but again, things slowed down and stopped by bed time.
I am still working, the kids coming in each morning is a nice distraction. I am really glad I have them to look forward to. They keep me busy, and my mind going, so I am not upset about not having had this baby yet. The prospect of getting up with nothing to do is very bleak.

So I will sign off for now. I am feeling peaceful, and relaxed, and want to get as much rest as I can, as soon I know I will need my energy. :)

I will post again for sure next week if I haven't yet had the baby, but hopefully before that with a story of a great birth!

Flipped!

So the great news is, Baby has flipped!! Good to know that all the walking I have done in the last 5 days has increased gravity and brought that little head down to where it should be! Its been an intense 5 days, on the phone with Sylvia, discussing options, and declining, discussing and more declining. I understand and appreciate their position, but I still have the right to refuse, and let my body work. Which it seems to be doing quite well I must say! I was 3 cm's dilated today, and 75% effaced. I saw Pauline, and she did a stretch and sweep to active some hormones, and we will have to wait and see if anything happens in the next few days.
There is lots more to write, but its late, and I just wanted to give a quick update about the progress. I will write again on the weekend to fill in all the rest that's been going on.

Have a great night!

Breastfeeding, Breech, and Snow

I've been waiting for it, and its happened. After I had Grace, Angelina would sit and breastfeed her baby dolls. I understood that she didn't remember breastfeeding and that's why it was after I had Grace, and she saw it, that she did it. It made me so proud! I would tell her, "Good girl, that's how we feed out babies, right?" And she would respond, "Yep!"
So I have been waiting for Grace thinking maybe she would do it sooner, because we are still a 'nursing couple'. Well the other night Goran and I went out together, and my parents came to watch the girls for us. When we came home, there was Gracey, all freshly bathed, in her PJ's, nursing her baby 'Belle". I almost cried. Mom said that a little while before, she saw her tugging and trying so hard to get her shirt up, to nurse her baby! The way I figure it, she likely missed me, and was missing the 'connection' of breastfeeding, so went ahead and nursed her baby. Again, it makes me proud that she 'breastfeeds' her babies. But also she understands the connection and still needs it from me. I luv her so much. I am so glad I decided to nurse through this pregnancy, and I am still able to enjoy this with her. An added benefit, they say siblings that nurse together, share a special bond!

Now our next topic.
Sylvia came today for home visit, and after we chatted, had tea, and baked good, we got down to business. Blood pressure, weight, I did the GBS swab, ect. Then she checks baby's positioning, and it appears baby is breech. All I have to say is YUCK! But I have had a few hours to think this out. I declined all interventions at this time. Why you may ask? Here is why,

1. Baby could have 3 weeks to turn around yet
2. So far baby has been head down every time, except this one time
3. If we do an external version, and baby turns, but baby's cord gets trapped, and heart rated drops, I end up with a c-section.
4. I have a very adequate pelvis, and I know, and my midwife knows I can do it!(thank you Sylvia for giving me the power to trust my body!)
5. The % of baby's breech in labor is 3-4 %. So my chances are low.

So there you have it. In 3 weeks if baby is still playing silly, then I may rethink my decision. But right now, I want to enjoy my last few weeks, and trust my body. Its really hard. Everyone seems to get pretty worked up about this. What if this happens, or that, what if, what if, what if? And 99% of the time the what ifs never happen and baby turns, and comes out just fine. And many times a baby is this way for a reason, a tight cord, cord around the neck, ect. I remember now with Grace, it was hard to enjoy the pregnancy because of how she layed. The last month or so was filled with worry, and in the end she came out perfect. I bit strangely, but everything worked out just fine. Right now my plan is to think positive, and enjoy the last few weeks.To soon its over, and I will be wishing I was pregnant again:)

And the snow! November 8, the first day! Wow! I am so surprised! The kidz absolutely luved it! Really all they did was walk in it, and eat it, (another yuck)but they luved it none the less. Angelina kept saying things like,"Look, its on the trees!" and "Its covering the ground!" Boy, is she in for a surprise after our first good snow fall!

Well I'm off to the TV. Hope every ones week is going well, and I will post again soon!

Happy Halloween!!

Angelina is quit excited about donning on her costume, and taking to the streets. Grace, I'm sure will be happy to tag along. Here they are ready to go in their costumes.






The midwife apt. was yesterday, and everything was splendid. Baby is head down, low, but not engaged as I had thought. Next week Sylvia will come for a home visit to 'check things out'. I always luv when they come into the home. So much more personal. I make tea, and home baked goods to share...its really like a visit with friend.
I also blew up the pool, 'just in case' I go early. I can always hope! Goran is getting the downstairs shower functional, and putting in a nice spray shower head for if I need that for some pain relief. He is also brushing up on his coaching skills, by reading "The Birth Partner" by Penny Simkin. He read it while I was pregnant with Grace and requested it to read again. I'm also gathering supplies. Bedsheets for the futon, old towels, receiving blankets, hats for Baby, space heater, so it can be nice and warm, just birthing stuff. Its nice to be doing something in preparation.
I have also started nesting. Going, room by room, and giving a good cleaning. Clearing out closets, going through cloths, that kind of thing. With both the girls I did this as well, and it was a few weeks before birth. I am also cooking casseroles, and baking breads, cookies, and muffins for the freezer. This way after Baby comes I won't have so much to do. I can put a casserole in for supper, get muffins out for guests, all that sort of thing.
As it turns out Angelina guiltily told me yesterday that she wants to go to Cheryl's house to see her house. It has nothing to do with the baby, and she would actually like to see the baby, and maybe watch some TV when the time comes. So when the times comes, I will just let her come and go from the room as she pleases and see how she handles that. I told her after Baby comes she can go to Cheryl's and tell her if its a boy or girl. She said that was great.
Daycare is going well. My friend, from down the street, and I had a Halloween party for the kidz on Monday. We sang songs, played games, did a craft, and decorated cookies. They had a GREAT time. I am scaling down activities and crafts abit, as I am getting more tired. I am still doing them, as the kids LUV them, just some simplier things. Gluing, coloring, free flow stories and songs through the day, that sort of thing. We are still going outside every day, and walking Angelina to preschool and back on Thursdays.

I have 9 wool soakers complete. I just have to wash and lanalize them. I have enough wool for one more, so I am working on it now, and when I'm done it, that's it for now. I have a few different sizes, and varied that pattern a bit to figure out how to do one I really like. I am happy with what I learned, and with what I made. This way if I do really like them, I can make some bigger sizes when Baby needs them, and I will know just how to do it.

I 'm still feeling good, tired, but nothing unusual. When I get a whole nights sleep I'm good. But if Grace has been up a few times, I'm a bit ruff the following day. Sometimes I think I would really like to be done being pregnant, but then a day like today, I'm ok with a few more weeks. But I guess whether I like it or not, Baby will come on his/her agenda, not mine:)

Following is a picture, as the girls make my tummy into a pumpkin/jack-o-lantern. Such a blast!

34 weeks and 5 days, Pics!

Here is a few pictures I promised.

Here we are for the Hiemstra Family Thanksgiving walk. The tree behind us is the tree that we usually climb and have a picture done in, but, well, I wasn't quite up for climbing this year:)


And here I am, just last night. Its amazing to see myself. How much my baby belly has grown, and see the 'drop'. Now that I see it in a picture, I can really see the slope of my belly, and how low it is.

A Sing Along

I put the baby car seat in the van. In preparation for the baby's first care ride. When I did it I also switched the girls around. Grace is in Angelina's old spot, and the baby car seat is beside her. So they are both in the middle. Angelina is in the back. It is much easier getting them in and out. I don't have to run around from side to side to buckle them up. (I don't know how people did it when vans only had one side door.) And they can't fight either now. I always kept them together thinking they could play, and keep each other company, but they just fought more then anything. Everyone needs a little space, right?
So, off I went shopping last night. Each one in their 'new' spot. On the way home I caught Angelina singing to the music. Just a kidz CD I have in the car. It was very cute. She didn't know all the words, but when the chorus came on, I could here her trying so hard to get the words in time with the CD. She's grow, and becoming such a preschooler.

As for me, I am getting uncomfortable. During the last week, my pelvis pressure has increase. By the end of the night the inside of my thighs are throbbing, and my back is really starting to hurt too. Its almost like a nerve. Just the way Baby sits sometimes...and I can hardly more, it hurts. And the braxton hicks are becoming more frequent, and a wee bit uncomfortable. A few weeks ago, I was getting tired and all that, but I wasn't ready for the pain of childbirth quite yet. I was willing to put up with pregnancy as trade of for that. But now, I would just like to sleep on my back, walk without waddling, and be able to get up off the couch with out help, or grunting, go 3 hours between trips to the bathroom....So now I am ready. I am willing and ready to accept and embrace the pain of childbirth, because when its over, I will feel sooo much better. And I would really like to hold my baby in my arms. Watch the love in Goran's face as he see his new child for the first time. See the wonder on the girls faces when they see their new baby...
Yes, I am ready for that now. But all in good time. Babies tend to have their own time table;)

Dropped

Yesterday I was resting on the couch, and I got up to get ready to wake the kidz up. Suddenly I had the urge to pee so bad, I almost didn't make it from the couch to the bathroom. I thought to myself, "That was strange." But continued about the afternoon.
"Oh, my goodness!"exclaimed one of my mom's who was picking up her son when she saw me. "You've dropped."
I started thinking about the when I had gotten up off the couch. Hummm.
So when Goran got home, I lifted up my shirt and asked him, "Does it look like I dropped?"
" Yes!" He exclaimed, pretty much the same way. "Big time!"
And honestly, I can feel it. The past week or so I have had a hard time catching my breath, and my bra has been really digging into me by the end of the day. But, I can breath better! And Baby's feet feel just a bit lower then before when he/she goes on a kicking spree. And, and I can feel extra pressure in my perineum, that is in a different place than before.
So it looks to other people like I dropped, and it feels like it to me. "Dropped" referes to the baby's head descending in to the pelvis in preparation for labor. For a first time baby it is quite normal for it to happen at this time. Usually with 2nd, 3rd, ect baby's it doesn't happen until the woman goes into labor. But, its not unheard of to happen now, and it likely means I will have lots of prodormal labor. This is a lot of start and stop labor. It means changes are happening in preparation for labor. It usually results in a shorter labor, when labor really does kick in. But in the mean time it can be very tiring, and the woman, (me) is in a constant state of alertness.
But, knowing all this will give me an advantage. I am a prepared, and ready to get my rest.
My mom predicted that I would go early. I kept saying "No." But now, I think she might be on to something. Only time will tell. And really, it doesn't mean that much, I could still hang onto well into December!!

The rest of the family is doing well. Grace is still getting up to pee at night, but goes to bed right afterwards. And I am usually up once or twice anyways, so no big deal. Angelina does as well, but she is old enough she does it all on her own. Goran is busy, as usual. He is looking for a deep freezer for me. Just a smallish apt. size one, so I can put some extra food in it, in preparation for the baby's birth. This way I won't have to do to much cooking afterwards. I could make some bread and freeze it too.....

Well, that's all for now. I will get Goran to take a few pics, and post them to see if anyone else notices the difference.

Have a great day!!