36w Bump Picture

36 weeks--Weekly Doctors Appointment

We had our doctors appointment this afternoon, it was supposed to be at 3:45 but because of the weather & the multiple car accidents, we got there at 4. They did my Group B Strep test, and my first internal exam. Group B Strep is simply a bacteria that 10-30% of pregnant women carry. If you have the bacteria you're given antibiotics once you go into labor as not to pass it to the baby since it can cause serious health problems in the newborn. The doctor reported that the baby was in the head down position, and that I was dilated 1cm. So no "real" progress, but I guess 1cm is better than nothing! Just as I was getting up from the exam, I turned white as a sheep and laid right back down, I passed out! The doctor said that this was a common reaction to internal exams, something about the combination of the weight of the uterus and the pressure that they put on the cervix during the exam. Anyway, I felt pretty stupid!! They checked my blood pressure again, and everything was fine in 5 minutes. The whole time we were there Kane had the hiccups, it didn't even faze him! He's measuring right on target for 36 weeks, and still the strong heartbeat. I've been having contractions everyday for the past 2 weeks, about 2 an hour and about 45 seconds duration, but nothing consistent. I figure I'll have plenty of practice with them by the time I go into labor! Alright, that's all for now. I'll be updating the blog every Friday night now since each Friday afternoon is when I have my appointments from now until delivery!

35 week Recap!

Ok, so I said I was going to update on Sunday, but the Primetime Emmy's were calling my name...very funny this year! Anywho, on to the recap!


Meet with the Pediatrician:
Wednesday afternoon Chip and I met with our soon to be pediatrician Mrs. Dr. Wiley with the Pediatric Diagnostic Center with CHKD. We found this group through our recommended list from the hospital. Their office is very close to our house, only about 2 miles actually, on Concert Dr. in front of the Va Beach Amphitheater. The building is brand new right behind Landstown High School. Since it's on Concert Drive, the entire building is decorated with music notes and lots of other musical decor.

We came prepared with a list of questions for Dr. Wiley and she was happy to sooth our new parent concerns. We were happy to see that they had separate sick & well child waiting areas. Also their office has same day sick appointments & Saturday sick appointments as well. We learned all about Kane's vaccination schedule, goodness there are so many, I had no clue. I also informed her that I was planning on breast feeding. They provide a Lactation consultant on staff to help out first time moms get through the tough times which was great to hear. All in all we really liked Dr. Wiley's personality, she didn't speak down to us, and also stressed the importance that we felt comfortable with her.


Final Birthing Class:
It was sad to say goodbye to our instructor Laurie, but Thursday night was our last birthing class, six weeks sure flew by! We covered what happens once baby is born: Vitamin K shot (stimulates blood clotting), apgar score at 1 minute and 5 minutes of life (a 1-10 score based on heart rate, how quickly baby "pinks up", breathing, reflex, & muscle tone) hearing screening, Hepatitis B shot, &.......CIRCUMCISION!!!

OHHH the circumcision topic.....Chip was cringing since they went into detail as to what the procedure entailed. Here's how it went, please envision Chip's face becoming increasingly scrunched up by the moment. Laurie explained, "So the pediatrician on call will take the baby boys born the previous day back to the nursery together. They will give them pacifiers dipped in what is like a sugar water to keep him content. Then they will tightly swaddle their upper bodies so their arms don't flail about. They then strap his little legs down to the board, he's snug as a bug! The Dr. will then inject his little pee pee with a local anesthetic, and SWOOP they will slice away the foreskin!" All of the dad's jaws were to the floor! She quickly added "Oh and dad's you'll be happy to know that your little boy's penis will be numb, but this is a practice that has only started to take place in the last 5 years, you all weren't as lucky!" Birthing class, $65. 9 months of pregnancy, tough work. Seeing 11 soon-to-be-dads faces when the instructor said "SWOOP they will slice away the foreskin!" PRICELESS.


Breast Feeding Class:
Saturday morning I picked up my cousin Dana and we went together to the free breast feeding (or BFing) class offered at Obici out in Suffolk (looks like a Hotel inside, not a hospital). We got some great information on common misconceptions of BFing, and typical stumbling blocks that most women face, and how to overcome them. Here's a little fun fact: Did you know that a baby's stomach at 1 day old is only the size of a small marble, and at 10 days the size of a ping pong ball. We were able to practice doing the proper holds for baby while BFing. Unfortunately we had to use these HUGE cabbage-patch babies whose heads were triple the size of a normal baby! Over all I feel like I have a pretty good handle on what to do, and what not to do. I really hope the BFing works out, and I'm able to do it as long as possible. I feel like with the benefits to myself, Kane & my pocketbook that BFing offers that I'd be crazy not to! Fun Fact: Did you know that the average family will save upwards of $1,500 BFing rather than formula feeding in the 1st year. ::Cha Ching::


Deep Creek Baby Shower:
Sunday morning before the shower I was meeting my mom for breakfast at her favorite, Frank's Truck Stop. Much to my surprise our close friends Julie, Elizabeth, & Kathryn from Roanoke had come to surprise me! It was so great to see them. We all had breakfast together and got to catch up on girl talk.

Around 1:30 we all headed up to our church where Ms. Susie & Ms. Rhonda were setting up my Micky Mouse themed shower! Everyone began to trickle in around 2. Family, friends, church family, everyone was there! We all sat in a circle where I opened gifts. Everyone snacked on the food, ate the yummy cake that my aunt Susan brought (Chip and I are still eating it!!) and visited with one another. I was great to finally meet my new little cousins Kelsey (3mos.) & Robbie (5mos.) they're already getting sooo big!! Thanks to everyone who loves us so much, we got great gifts and little Kane will be the most styling newborn ever with his new outfits...especially the Halloween costumes! :) Last night and today Chip and I have been going through everything, snipping TINY plastic tags, unwrapping & removing tape, doing loads upon loads of baby clothes, sheets & blankets, then finding a place for everything in the nursery! Chip has taken on the true Daddy task of putting everything together. I thought the Pack N' Play was going to get the best of him, but NO, he finally got it set up and did sort of a "victory end zone dance"! We are OFFICIALLY READY FOR KANE!!!

First internal exam on Friday. Appointments every week from now on!

35 weeks....

WE'RE OFFICIALLY 35 WEEKS PREGNANT WITH ONLY 35 DAYS LEFT UNTIL OUR DUE DATE!!

I'll be updating on Sunday night, we've got a busy week ahead.

• Wednesday- Meeting with our Pediatrician
  
• Thursday- Final Birthing class
• Saturday- Sentara Breastfeeding class with Dana
• Sunday- Local family & friends Baby Shower
  

34 weeks--Jam packed week!

Week 34 was quite an eventful one! We had out 5th Birthing class, our 34 week check up with the OB, and our shower in Maryland, I shall start from the beginning!

5th Class-- C-Sections:

This was a very interesting class since we were able to hear first hand from a couple who just had a C-Section 2 months ago. While I already knew plenty about C-Sections from my mom, it was good to hear from someone who had just gone through it. It was interesting to find out that 30% of pregnancies are delivered by c-section, most of those being failed inductions. All in all, it was very informative and we enjoyed seeing her new baby boy. Hopefully a c-section will not be in my future, fingers crossed!

34 week Dr. Appointment:

This weeks appointment went smoothly. It was pretty much same ol' routine, weight (sigh), measuring my belly from pubic bone to the top of my uterus which happens to be directly under my boobs at this point & doppler to hear the heart beat. Everything checked out to be good and on target! We went on to the Q&A portion of the appointment which is Chip's favorite! Since I've been quite absent minded during the pregnancy Chip has been right there to pick up the slack with my brain, he always has plenty of questions for the doctor, while I tend to draw a blank. Good news is, at this point if I go into labor the Dr. won't be taking any artificial measures to stop labor, we'll just have a baby!

Maryland Baby Shower:

This weekend, Chip and I drove up to Gaithersburg for the shower that his mother was hosting for us. We arrived late late around 1:15am Friday night, well technically Saturday morning. The shower was from 2-4 Saturday afternoon, and everything was perfect! I was able to meet all of Beth's good school friends, and also see the women who came to the wedding who were good friends of Chip's family growing up. Chip's brother Peter & Mary, were able to make the trek from South Carolina to be with us, which was a huge surprise! We had a nice intimate shower at Beth's house with great food and fun games. Beth knitted us a BEAUTIFUL blanket for Kane, which is sure to become "The Blankie". Later on we all went out to dinner, a great ending to a great day.

The answer to everyone's burning question: "How are you feeling?"

• I have bad heartburn...have never, ever had that.....HELLO TUMS!
• Sore Tummy...being kicked so hard leaves me quite sore these days
• Shortness of breath
• Bruised Ribs from little feet
• Contractions, none consistent yet but boy are they getting me ready
  

33 weeks--4th Class

Not too much to report this week. We had our 4th birthing class last night. We learned about how the epidural works (yay, sign me up!) and also other medication options that women may want other than the epidural. We also learned more about the use of foreceps & vacuum assistance which totally freaks Chip and myself out. HOWEVER, the new vacuum that is used is completely not what we expected, and TOTALLY different than what has been used in the past.

Here are the pictures of the old and new vacuums.
As You can see, the one on top really cones around the baby's head, while the new one on the bottom is flat and just creates a quick seal. The old one involved a nurse and doctor's combined use, while the new one is a hand held pump that only the doctor needs to use. Overall, we were pleasantly surprised to see that if a vacuum was needed during our delivery that it wasn't so invasive like we thought.

Here are some fun facts about what baby Kane is up to during week 33:

• The baby is now 4.4 pounds and around 17.5 inches in length.
• The diameter of the head is about 8.5cm.
• The baby fuzz, lanugo, is disappearing.
• Your baby drinks about a pint of amniotic fluid a day.
• You may gain a pound a week for the rest of the pregnancy.
• Half of your weight gain will go directly to your baby.