3.25.2010

week 39... oh baby where art thou?

3 more days until my due date!! THREE... and still, no baby. Not even close to having a baby. Or at least that's how I feel right now. Went to my weekly doctor's appt on Tuesday and, yes, I am still dilated 1cm, 75% effaced. What gives, baby?! I know that it's warm and safe in there, but there are a ton of people out here just waiting to meet you!!

My next appt is on Monday the 29th (day after my due date) and at that time, if there is still no baby, then we will probably discuss a plan of action. Of course I don't want to be induced, but I understand that may just happen. Whatever is best for me and the baby.

So in the meantime, I have been walking (a lot!!) and doing every other so-called remedy that people have told me to try. Word to the wise: they don't work. It's a bunch of BS. I've even started making up my own rememdies... anything to get this baby a movin' and a groovin'. Nada. I think that it's safe to say that baby will come when baby is good and ready. End of story.

This week at work has passed at an all time record of S.....L.....O.....W!! My days literally feel like years. I'm tying up all of my loose ends at work, just in case I go home tonight and don't come back for another 3 months.

Other than the obvious, I don't have too much to report. Baby R has been as active as ever in my baby belly. I know that room is at a mininum in there. I keep saying "if you come out now you will have so much more room to stretch those loooong legs out". The baby likes it when Eddie rubs on my tummy. Last night baby was moving around so much that it was making it pretty difficult to eat my dinner. So Eddie started to rub on the baby belly and it was like instant serenity. Eddie is going to be such a phenomenal father!

So next week is it... I will be 40 weeks pregnant. Man oh man. I started this blog when I was 11 weeks and baby was not even 2in long. Now I have a full grown 7-8lb little human being inside of me. It has been such a joy writing these posts - and I appreciate all of those who read my blogs and keep up to date with me, Eddie and our sweet Baby R. I know that time is going to be a rare commodity around the Reynolds household for the next few months, but I am going to do my best to keep you all updated on our new family.

And so I end this blog, hoping that the next one I write is the announcement of our beautiful baby boy or girl... but in the event that it's not:

More to report from the baby belly at week 40!!!!!!!

And just in case this is the last pregnant picture that you will see of me, here's my baby bump:

Peace, Love, and Baby,

Meredith & Eddie

3.17.2010

38 weeks... still here!

As you can see, Baby R has not decided to grace us with his or her presence just yet. I am as anxious as ever, but I understand that baby will come when baby is good and ready. In the meantime, I just wait. We're all just waiting...

I had my weekly doctor's appointment on Monday and still no major progression since week 37. I am still dilated at just 1cm (have been since I was 36 weeks). But I am now effaced 75% (up from 50%). So that's a good sign. The softer your cervix gets (which is the effacement) the more that you dilate. So hopefully by the time I am 100% effaced, the dilation process will kick into high gear. Or maybe not...

As much as Eddie and I cannot wait to get our hands on this precious babe we're also enjoying our days, evenings, and nights of non interrupted sleep and quiet time. Because all of that will change, drastically, sooner than later. This past Saturday we went out for a delicious dinner, just the two of us, to Camerons. I haven't been since the one in Bexley left and Eddie has never been. It was just as good as I remembered! We definitely need to go there more often. It's good to have our "date nights" and we will continue to do so after the baby is born, we've already made that promise to each other. But we also know that a date night, just he and I, may have to wait a few months after the babe is born... we're okay with that!

I honestly don't have too much to report. My doctor said that if I happen to go past my due date then at that point we will begin to start talking about other options. She told me that she will not let me go 10 days past my due date. She also assured me that this is not going to be a big baby by any means - I'm thinking 7lbs... maybe 8lbs tops. Of course I know that many first time mama's go past their due dates... I am probably being the unrealistic one thinking that I would actually go a few days early. I guess that I just have high hopes :) My OB will be out of the country next week so I will be seeing another OB within the practice. The next time that I will see Dr. Summers will be on 3/29, the day after my due date. Obviously, I hope to not make it to that appointment. It would be just my luck to go into labor while my doctor is out of town... err, I mean out of the COUNTRY! Oh well, at that point I won't give a damn. I will just want someone who knows what the heck they're doing.

I don't have a specific birth plan - I was afraid that if I made one then everything would go array! So I am just going to go with the flow. I was going back and forth, contemplating an epidural for the longest time. I did some research on the internet and quickly realized that ignorance is indeed bliss! I talked to Dr Summers about some of the fears that I had about receiving an anestheic and she put my mind at ease. She is a supporter of the epidural but is also a supporter of going the au natural route. We talked about the kind of labor that I would ideally like to experience. Of course I told her a good one, and one without pain. So I think that you already know what direction I'm headed in. The only thing that I am requesting - besides drugs - is immediate skin on skin contact as soon as the baby is born. I've heard that it's a pretty incredible bonding experience and often times the baby will immediately root around looking to nurse. It's so amazing how that intuition just kicks right in. We truly are phenomenal creatures. I plan to continue the skin on skin contact for quite sometime... and Eddie will be doing it once we're home from the hospital. He needs that bonding time just as much as I do. Other than that, I am going to follow my body's lead... it will know exactly what to do when the time comes.

So the baby's bag is packed, my bag is packed, the room is completely done, so we wait...

More to report from the baby belly at week 39... I'm sure we'll still be here!!

Peace, Love, and Baby,

Meredith & Eddie

3.10.2010

37 weeks... almost there!!

Can I just tell you how swollen my poor feet and ankles... ahem, I mean cankles, are these days?! S-W-O-L-L-E-N. There's no getting around it. No matter what I do. I have had issues with swelling in my left foot for years and the doctors have never been able to determine why. No blood clots, no fracture, no fluid, just a puffy foot that is not attractive when it's at its full puffiness. I have had every test done under the sun and still no answer. I always feared that this would happen when I got pregnant. And it has. And if my left foot being the size of Texas isn't bad enough, my right foot has obviously decided to follow suite. Not fun. Not one bit of fun. I am currently sitting here with both of my legs elevated, drinking my millionth glass of water hoping that the swelling goes down at some point.

It doesn't help that I pretty much sit at my desk all day at work.. and I don't wear the worlds most supportive shoes. The last part of that sentence is totally my fault. I should know better! I did get some comfy Dr Scholls flats that are super cute. So lately, if I'm not wearing those, then I'm wearing my gym shoes. I do make it a point to get up and move around, walk the halls, the stairs, to get my circulation going. And although I do all of these things, nothing really seems to help. I have even started to sleep with pillows at the end of my bed so my feet can be even more elevated when I'm sleeping. Pretty much, my side of the bed has been taken over by pillows galore. I'm over it.

My doctor's appt this past Monday didn't give me much good news as far as my progression with dilating... she said that I was still at a steady 1cm, maybe 1.5cm. Seriously, how could she tell?! But she said that my "cervix is super soft". Whatever that means. I need for her to talk to me in layman's terms... I think that she forgets that I have no idea what any of this means! But I'm learning :) I am hoping that she tells me I'm at least 2cm next week when I see her. I would jump off of the table and hug her if she told me that I was 3cm. Wishful thinking.

I feel like my belly is at maximum capacity for this little one... the movements are all over the place and not in the least bit comfortable. Kicking me in the ribs, on my sides, all over my poor bladder. As you can tell, I am ready for this baby to come... I have this theory about full moons and how gravity works and blah blah blah... so my due date is March 28th and the next full moon is March 29th. Please oh please let my theory be right. My sissy really wants this baby to be born on her birthday, which is March 21st. I would love that too!! Especially since that is exactly one week before baby's due date.

So other than my feet and ankles-now-turned-cankles being swollen and the baby kicking my poor insides like crazy, I'm doing fantastic! Just as a side note - I LOVE the movements of my baby and I am not in the least bit complaining about that. It's just now that baby is fully developed and has little to no wiggle room, it makes for some very uncomfortable jabs.

Eddie and I took our Baby Care Basics class last night (3/9) and also got a lovely tour of the maternity floor at the hospital. Holy Hotel, this place is gorgeous! Its just like a hotel. It should be called the Dublin Hilton. I feel lucky to be delivering there. We have our Breastfeeding class tomorrow evening (3/11) and then we're done and ready! We'll know how to change our baby's diaper and feed him/her properly.

Here are some pics of the baby's ultra adorable baby's room and, of course, my baby bump:








More to report from the baby belly at week 38? Maybe, maybe not!

Peace, Love, and Baby,

Meredith & Eddie

3.03.2010

week 36... BIG NEWS

So I am 36 weeks and 3 days, or something like that. I started my weekly doctor's appointments earlier this week (on Monday the 1st). I will see her weekly from here on out - she will check my cervix to see if I've started to dilate. So the BIG NEWS... I've started to dilate! Baby is makin' his/her way into our lives. Oh how sweet it is.

I'm only 1cm, but that's a good start :) I hope to have progressed at least to 2cm by my appt next Monday. But I understand that I can very easily sit at 1cm or even 2 or 3cm's for quite some time. So I am being optimistic and hoping that isn't the case. I hope that baby comes close to his/her due date. Now that I know that the process has officially begun, I am in serious crunch time. Our crib finally came in. Thank the Lord. So yay, the nursery will be complete by the end of this week! Makes me a very happy mama-to-be :)

I just can't believe that this is actually happening. I have been waiting for March to get here since the end of July and now that it is here I don't know what to do with it! I am excited beyond words, but it's a bit bittersweet as well. I have truly had a beautiful pregnancy (lets hope that these last few weeks are no different). I am going to miss having Baby R roll and squirm around in my belly - even at 3am! I'm going to miss Eddie laying on the bed with his hand rested on my stomach watching him in amazement as the baby responds to his touch. I truly am going to miss the pleasure of keeping this baby safe and warm during his/her time of growth. But... soon enough I will have the real thing laying peacefully in my arms or on my chest as I sing my sweet lullabies of Michael Jackson and Madonna :) I am so ready to meet this little angel of ours.

Between now and the end of the month my plan is to just take it easy. Eddie is headed down to visit Ivan this weekend (just for one night). He deserves it! Besides, if he doesn't do it now I don't know when the next opportunity will arise. In 18 years, maybe?! Ha. Only joking! As much as I would love to go and visit with Jamie & Ivan, I just don't think that it's in my best interest to go. Anything can happen at any point and I don't want to take any chances.

I am highly contemplating hiring a house cleaner to come in and really do some cleaning to our home. Eddie says that he'll do it, but really, I just want him to relax a little before things really begin. Hmmm, maybe I'll do that on Saturday morning when he's gone?!

Here is my lovely baby bump:

More to report from the baby belly at 37 weeks...

Peace, Love, and Baby,

Meredith & Eddie

3.02.2010

35 weeks...

I don't think that I ever imagined myself getting to 35 weeks... I mean, I knew that I eventually would, but I just don't think that I really thought about how I would feel 32 days away from my due date. I remember hitting the 12 week mark and thinking that I had hit some ginormous milestone. Well, technically I did because it was during week 12 that I finally started to gain my energy back and feel like a normal human again. Unfortunately, I am back in the pure and utter exhaustion stage and I fear that I may never feel like a normal human being again.Or at least sleep like a normal human being again. I know that I will be up with the baby every couple of hours throughout the night but at least I'll resume my ever-so-missed position of sleeping on my tummy. Oh man, how I've missed it.

Week 35 has been a long week. I think that it's going to sort of drag it's feet from here on out. The anticipation of FINALLY finding out the sex of Baby R is weighing heavily on my mind and I absolutely cannot wait for that moment to arrive. I am also counting down the days until my due date, so I'm sure that isn't helping either. If I could, I would sit and watch the hours and minutes tick by... but it's nice to know that in just a few short days, when people ask "when are you due" I can respond with "at the end of this month" or "just a few short weeks" or "tomorrow".

Eddie and I have signed up for a parenting class and a breastfeeding class at Dublin Methodist Hospital - where I will be delivering sweet Baby R. We're taking a Baby Care Basics class on Tuesday 3/9. That class will give us the vital and pertinent information that we will need for baby once we come home from the hospital. Yes, we will definitely need that. Otherwise, we will sit staring at each other and the baby not knowing what in the hell to do next!! The other class is a Breastfeeding Preparation class on Thursday 3/11, so I will know how to correctly feed my child :) That's pretty essential.

The nursery is almost complete - just missing the all important crib! Hopefully it will be in by the end of this week or next. I'm growing antsy. But the dresser and glider are both in there and I finally finished all of the laundry. I manage to sort through and put things away on a daily basis. Eddie is making the individual shelves for the walls, hopefully this weekend, and we will also put up the bee decals. It's all coming together very nicely.

More to report from the baby belly at 36 weeks...

Peace, Love, and Baby,

Meredith & Eddie

2.18.2010

week 34... running out of room?

I know that I still have 5 weeks (and some days) left in my beautiful pregnancy, but is it too early for me to say that this baby is potentially running out of room in my belly? Either that, or this baby has got some seriously long legs and is just kicking, moving and practicing some killer dance moves in there. There are times when the jabbing and poking really makes me uncomfortable. It's primarily on my lower left side - like near my hip!

I've heard that the bigger the baby gets, the more the movements slow down... um, no. Not in our case. This precious little babe is a full-time mover and shaker! Has been since the very first time we heard the heartbeat. But I'm not complaining. Not one bit. I absolutely love watching my tummy move. It's like seeing it for the first time with every little movement. What's not to love about that incredible bond. It's indescrible. The feeling, the emotion, the excitement, the anticipation.

So I have had both of my baby showers. My second one was on 2/13 hosted by my sister-in-law, Clara. It was perfect. She had a chocolate theme and I was in heaven... go figure. We got a ton of crib sheets, receiving blankets, burp cloths, books, diapers, lots of good essentials! Since all of our furniture has YET to arrive, I have started doing laundry. It needs to be done, so I figured that I might as well get a head start on it. On Tuesday when I was folding the small little onesies, I totally got all emotional and started to tear up. I just can't wait to meet this little baby! Me, getting emotional over laundry. The one 'chore' that I can't stand. It's just really hitting me that the baby will be here so soon. I can already imagine the baby in the itty bitty clothes. They are all just so adorable! I am heading down to IKEA this Saturday to purchase the rug and the dresser/changing table for the room. At least then we will finally have some furniture in the room! The glider/ottoman is in but for some reason, the crib was put on backorder on 2/11. Direct Buy is trying to figure out why and when it will be delivered. It's a bit essential and I am just getting antsy.

I saw my OB earlier this week and all is well! Baby's HR was at 145bpm and my BP and weight still looked great. I will see her again in 2 weeks. I will be 36 weeks at that point and she will continue to see me weekly to check my cervix to see if I have started to dilate. As of this very moment, I have 38 days until due date time. I hope to go not a minute over my due date... but I'm sure that I will. I'm definitely getting to the point of pure and total exhaustion.

More from the baby belly at week 35...

Peace, love, and baby,

Meredith & Eddie

2.11.2010

weeks 31, 32 & 33... I'm a big time slacker!

I am currently in the middle of week 33 and time has just gotten the best of me. I have been on the go, go, go, and here I am three weeks later. I am trying to stay on top of things - really, I am - but I'm starting to feel like I'm in a bit of a time crunch. Overwhelmed, maybe?! Yes, definitely!!

According to my "baby ticker" I have about 45 more days to go. Wowza! That's like, just around the corner.

So over the last 3 weeks, Eddie has been feverishly working on the nursery. The walls are painted, the new hardwood floors have been laid (man, that was a slight catastrophe), and the beautiful curtains that my mother-in-law so graciously made, have been hung. It looks wonderful! The furniture should be in any minute now... so for the time, all of the 'baby stuff' is currently sitting in the furniture-less nursery and in the hallway.

So the BIG arrival of Rachel and Brian has come and gone :( and this time, more than ever, I am so extremely sad. I am always sad when Rach comes and goes or when we visit them and have to leave, or when we spend 7 amazing days in Hawaii with them only to part ways and head home... and unfortunately, I have a feeling that when this baby is born it's going to be harder than it's ever been for them to come and go. So they flew in last Thursday (2/4) morning and we spent every waking minute together from the time that they landed until the time that they left. Eddie and Brian were best buds - so while the girls were preparing for a baby shower, the guys were having their bachelor nights. Too funny, to say the very least!! My shower thrown by Rach and Stacey was nothing short of spectacular!! It was breathtaking. Fresh flowers, homemade food by Rach and Val, beautiful table coverings, it was all so perfect! I am ever so blessed. I had about 43 guests attend! We got so much stuff!! All of our big items from our registry and then some. I am very, very happy about that. My very dear friend Jessica - and the best photographer, might I add - joined in on the festivities and snapped lots and lots of pictures. I'm sure that they will be phenonemal, like always. I can't wait for her to send us the disc. AND... her present to us: when the baby is born she will do the baby's first photo session for free! Is she amazing or what!! Here are so pictures of the shower decor (note: all of the colors are lime green, black & white to go with our room color scheme!!)  


















As you can tell, it was simply gorgeous! A HUGE thank you to the most amazing sissy ever, Rachel, Stacey, Valerie, Janet, and my beautiful mother. This day was so incredible for me. I love you all.

I have yet another baby shower given by my sister-in-law, Clara, this coming Saturday. This shower will be much smaller - it's for Eddie's side of the family (the Reynolds' and the Smith's). I am very much looking forward to seeing everyone... and because it's a chocolate themed party!! And everyone knows that mama and Baby R loves chocolate these days :)

Not too much activity going on to report... other than the fact that my baby belly is getting mighty big!! I had my most recent doctor's appointment on Friday 2/5 and Rach got to come with me. She was so excited to hear the heartbeat :) My total weight gain at nearly 33wks gestation is 25lbs! Baby is already head down - but there could be some wiggle room in there so the baby can turn at any given moment. All I know is that this baby keeps me up at night... I swear to you, he/she is having quite the party in my baby belly :)

Baby's heartbeat has been at a constant 150-155bmp throughout my entire pregnancy. But on Friday, baby's heartbeat was at 137bpm. Dr Summers said that as the baby gets bigger and the central nervous system continues to develop, the heartbeat is more than likely to slow down. She was not in the least bit concerned, so I will take her word for it.

I can't believe that I have just over 6 weeks until my due date. I hope, hope, hope that I don't go too much over my due date. Rachel's bday is on March 21st so she is pushing for that date - Eddie thinks that I will go a few days early - my prediction is March 30th. Just as long as baby gets here safe and sound... that is the most important thing.

I promise that I won't wait another 3 weeks to write my blog! I am beaming with excitement and anticipation to meet this little one. These last 33 weeks have truly flown by. I hope that the next 6 (hopefully not more) fly by just as quickly... but in the meantime, I'm going to enjoy my last weeks with just Eddie and I and get as much rest as possible :)

As always, the baby bump:


More to report from the baby belly at week 34...

Peace, love, and baby,

Meredith & Eddie