25.8.10

baby update - finally!

Okay, so obviously my once-a-week baby updating has become a thing of the past, and though I've been meaning to write on here again, I haven't even thought about it that much. Really, I am basically just writing for myself (and maybe a few other sweet readers), so it hasn't been a priority these days!

Believe it or not, I am 37 1/2 weeks pregnant!!! I am so close I can just feel my baby boy in my arms. :)

DH and I decided to finally reveal our little guy's name. We really wanted to keep it a surprise, but that didn't happen because the few people we did tell decided to tell everyone else! It's okay, we are proud of the name we have chosen (though technically, DH chose it years ago), and it seems to fit our little guy already!

Baby boy's name will be Stephen Michael! :) Stephen means "crowned one" and Michael means "who is like God" or "chosen"!! Michael is also DH's middle name! We can't wait to meet our little Stephen!!!

I had NO idea how tough the third trimester would be though. Several weeks ago, I started feeling not so hot and was having a lot of issues with swelling, heart palpitations, lower back pain, and not being able to cool my body temp. down. My feet and ankles were so huge that it was scary to look at them, so I started to get concerned. It was a good thing I had a doctor's appt. that week, because my wonderful OB was a bit worried when he saw me. My blood pressure was slightly elevated, but nothing that pointed to pre-eclampsia or hypertension. He determined that I was super dehydrated but retaining water at the same time, as well as too much sodium in my diet. He decided to put me on bedrest for a week to see if I improved and said I had to cut out as much salt as possible and to drink a WHOLE lot more water and gatorade-like drinks. If I didn't get better, he was going to put me in the hospital on an IV.

Thankfully, I went to my appointment the next week, and things had improved a whole lot! I was still swollen (and I still am some), but he said it won't go away completely until the baby is born. So, he put me on partial bedrest only (I have to stay off my feet at least 12 hours a day) and continue the low-sodium, gobs of water diet.

So, here I am, sitting in bed off my feet, and starting to get impatient about the baby coming! I am now considered full-term, so if the baby came now he would be just fine! I can't even describe how ready I am for him to be here!!! We have everything set up for him and his nursery is finally complete (I will post pics soon).

I've been having lots of contractions (though they are sporadic and not time-able), and the Doc says I am 1 cm dilated and about 50% effaced already. But, really, that doesn't mean a thing...you can stay that way for weeks. DH and I are just praying that he comes sooner than later, because I am pretty uncomfortable! It is hard to get out of bed or even roll over in bed. I can hardly get in and out of the shower/bathtub without help, and all of my maternity clothes (except a select few) are too tight or small. I miss my regular jeans somethin' awful!

Baby Stephen weighs around 6 1/3 lbs. or so (based on the average baby of course) and is around 19 inches long. I do think he will be small because my tummy is still measuring a little small and both DH and I were small babies! But he is fully developed at this point!

My next doctor's appt. is Thursday, so I'm praying that I have progressed a bit more. We finished all of our childbirth classes, and I have been practicing my relaxation and breathing techniques, as well as comfortable positions to deal with contractions. I am determined not to be induced or have that C-section, but I am willing to do whatever it takes to make sure my little guy is born safe and healthy. Doc and I went over my birth plan, and he signed it, so we are good to go with that. Now all we need is a baby who is ready to go! :)

I will try to update again before I go into labor, but if you'd like to get real updates, you can find me on Facebook (if you don't know my last name, comment me with your email, and I'll send it). I plan to have my DH update on FB from my cell phone at the hospital.

Thanks for reading, and please pray for everything to go smoothly. I am nervous, but we are trusting God with this, as with all things!

3 comments:

GiGi said...

I so wish you the best!!!! Such an exciting time!

GiGi said...

I wish you the best!! Such a truly exciting time... blessings to you!

GiGi said...

This is truly an exciting time! I wish you the best!