Labour and Delivery - Early Labour...the never ending experience!

This past week we had some friends over and I found us telling our birth story. Tom and I put together the details fine but I thought I should write them out so I can remember better in the future. Now as this is a labour and delivery story I will be possibly talking about things that you may consider TMI so consider yourself warned. I have made it my policy during pregnancy, labour and delivery and post-partum to be open and honest with everything because so much isn't talked about.

I was due on the 14th March and at 6:30am that Wednesday morning I woke up to pee. This was no surprise as my nights were mostly sleepless at this point from being uncomfortable and needing to pee. As I went about my business I saw that I was bleeding, similar to the start of my period. It seemed like a lot to me so I called the triage of l&d and the nurse said better safe than sorry and to come in. I had already texted my mom freaking out and her, and my sister decided they would head down despite me having no contractions or anything. My dad also made a last minute decision to skip work and come down with them.

When we got to the hospital the nurse was great. I was hooked up to monitors and then checked out by a resident dr who said i was about 2-3 cm dilated. The bleeding was likely part of my bloody show - gross! They had me walk the halls to see if I dilated more or if contractions picked up(they were very sporadic at this point). After 4 hours I hasn't progressed anything further but had a regular ob appointment to go to so we left triage for the ob. While waiting 2 hours for the appointment (they were always late) I had contractions continuing and was very uncomfortable. I couldn't sit in the waiting room because of it so I paced. I never wanted to be the one to go to the hospital with false alarms so I was very disappointed even though I knew going in that morning it was not likely to be our day. My dr said I was indeed at 2 and she could stretch me to 3 so she performed a stretch and sweep of my membranes in hopes of getting things moving along.

Contractions continued for that night and throughout the early morning hours. They would become intense and close together and seem to be progressing and then slow down and disappear. On morning of the 15 I had painful contractions 3-4 minutes apart and lasting for a minute for 2 hours. I did not want to go in. I fought Tom and my mom and eventually gave in out of exhaustion and went in. My contractions continued in the van but as soon as we got into a room in triage they seemed to stop. My experience this day was terrible! The nurses were terrible and told me I was too happy to be in labour. I am not one to show I am in pain so that frustrated me. I was checked again and at about 3 cm and was sent to walk with checkins for monitoring the babies heart rate. After walking again for hours (I say 4 Tom says more) my contractions were pretty much done and I was only at 4cm. The jerk dr said that it was busy on the labour and delivery side and if it wasn't they could admit me so back home we went.

Friday was somehow my day of rest. I had moments of intense contractions and moments of nothing. I was so confused and disheartened by everything and thought I was crazy! Friday I also had the brilliant idea that doing summersaults would get the baby out. I was so sick of walking that I was up for it. So I attempted 4-5 summersaults that my sister K was entertained by. I wish we has videotaped it.

As the afternoon wore on my contractions began to intensify and were again 2-4 minutes apart last for about a minute and for about an hour and then they would space out again. This repeated so many times. Tom has downloaded an ap on his phone to time contractions and everyone was watching me for them. For some reason going to the bathroom brought them on and I had to pee a lot! Friday Tom and I went for a walk around the neighborhood in hopes of getting things to move faster. Contractions continued to come hard and heavy and then slow down for a bit and then hard and heavy again. I hadn't slept well in days!

Around midnight we decided to walk in our basement. I was having painful contractions again and just needed to move. We walked figure 8s for almost 2 hours before my contractions slowed enough for me to want to eat and sleep. I had a piece of toast with peanut butter at 1:30am on the 17th not knowing it would be my pre-game meal.

My Tips for L&D and Newborn loving

Below is an email I sent to a few women I know who are expecting. I didn't edit it much and it was typed late at night.

The following is unsolicited advice you can take or leave but I thought I would share with the pregnant ladies I know. I know that I enjoyed reading tips from people who had just been through labour and delivery since I knew their look was realistic. But I also know as a pregnant lady and then as a mother you receive so much advice/opinions from EVERYONE! So if it helps it does if not I was up feeding Charlie anyways so it was nice to be entertained (typed on my iPhone in the middle of the night so excuse typos).

Katie's Tips for Labour and Delivery and Newborn Loving



Dont forget the following in your hospital hospital bag
-pads - I recommend stay free brand as someone who never wears pads. I also found the hospital ones were too big for the bleeding I had. A regular bad was sufficient but I had overnights as well.
-Extra thick super soft toilet paper - you deserve it after delivery and it's better than hospital 1 ply hard toilet paper!
-bobby pins - I thought I packed some but apparently didn't and had none in my purse. My little front hairs bothered me so much during labour and my headband didn't stay in place.
-iPod - so good during labour - my playlist I listened to was all slower calming music and mostly Christian. It was a good distraction.
-Chapstick - so necessary for some reason.
- Clothes for baby - bring multiple sizes. We brought some newborn and some 0-3 months. Newborn did not fit. Same with hats - we brought all small ones - bring a couple sizes. You never know how big (and long) your baby will be.
-food!! You never know when you'll deliver And having some bars or snack food on hand would be nice - I wish I had some at 3am.

-when you think it's time to head to the hospital eat something if possible (or before it gets too close)!! My last meal was at 2am Saturday morning and was a piece of toast with peanut butter. Then I didn't eat till the yummy hospital breakfast at like 10am Sunday am. Here they offered me popsicles, jello and vegetable broth. The vegetable broth was offered till almost 18 hours in or so, so ask for it if you want it.
-don't be afraid to use the mirror while pushing. I never thought I would but being able to see progress was good and helped me to know i was doing the right thing.
- during delivery once the head was close to being out the nurse said to me "lay back and do what the doctor tells you" as she reclined the bed. This scared me to no end and I thought bad things were happening but really Charlie was just coming out and my pushing was done. So chances are if they say this all is ok.

-ask for help at the hospital - we didn't and should have at least seen the lactation consultant. They won't necessarily offer the help so ask. In many ways your on your own right away.

Newborn Loving
-a swaddle me is an amazing thing. Unless you have amazing swaddle skills like the nurses then you're fine. We have two swaddle me blankets that are amazing! We use them every night and he sleeps better in them then when he's not in one. If I want him to have a long afternoon nap I will also use it then. Does not work for every baby though I'm told.
-when your milk comes in it can come fast. Mine came too fast and I got some new stretch marks on my boobs! Ya! It also came faster than Charlie could eat so I ended up with a clogged milk duct that lead to mastitis by day 4. Fever,chills, red spots and hard breast all means mastitis - get checked out immediately!! It's painful. A pump helps to relieve the pressure so havin one on hand is handy!!
-breast feeding hurts! They say it shouldn't if your little one latches properly but think about sticking a vacuum to your nipple and tell me it won't hurt. It will get better. My nipples bled for the first week and a half but healed fine. It gets better! Don't give up. Take Tylenol or ibuprofen, use cabbage leaves, use lanolin cream and relax with it. It will get better and you will have good days followed by bad but it's worth it!
-have a shower and get dressed up and take good pics with your little one the first few days. I have no good pics of us and us as a family from the first few weeks. I lived in pjs and crazy curly hair.
-it's amazing how your life changes once they arrive but it's true you can't imagine life without your new baby.

I wish you all the best in these last days/weeks/months (whatever your case may be) and know of my ongoing prayers for you and your little one. If you ever have questions please ask. I've made it my policy to be an open book since soooo much of pregnancy, and labour and delivery you don't necessarily know about until your in it.

Mother's Day

Today is my first Mother's Day. It wasn't a typical Mother's Day but it will do. Last night we had a Jack and Jill for my sister A back home. So Tom and I drove down with the little man to be there. We didn't get home and to sleep until 2:30. Thankfully little man slept from 8-12:30 at the hall woke up to eat and feel asleep. I nursed him when we got home and he was out again till 7. He likely would have slept longer but I needed him to feed.

Motherhood has been a great and fun adventure so far. Today C is 8 weeks old. We've got most things figured out I think. He's sleeping for an average of 6 hours straight when he first goes down then will eat for 15 minutes and be asleep again for another 2-3 hours. We have had a 7 hour sleep once LO! We've developed a bit of a routine but it's evolving.

It will likely evolve more starting tomorrow because Tom starts his parental leave then. He was off for two weeks when C was first born and then went back. I am very excited for him to be off for the summer so we can spend time as a family learning more about one another. There is a lot we want to do and accomplish but we're going to take it one day at a time. I know I'll need to remind myself to enjoy the days as we experience them and to take time to thank God for all that we have been given.

I remember in high school writing a letter to my mom thanking her for being a great mom and telling her that I pray that Mary always guides her in continuing to be a great mom. Since becoming a mom I pray that I continue to strive to be a mom like our mother Mary by following the example of my mom. She is everything I want to be in a mom.

God bless all moms, grandmas, aunts, Godmothers and mother figures in our lives. May they be blessed by God and renewed by His Spirit as they care for God's children.

Basement Update #2

Things are moving along in our basement. As I said before our goal was February 1st....which we changed to February 18th when my family comes down. Well now we are changing it again to hopefully being ready to paint by the time my family comes down. With Tom's work schedule it is hard for him to get the work done and to get people to help out so it's been a bit of a challenge but a good one. I know that this work makes him feel like he is doing something for our family. I think he misses out on parts of the pregnancy because he obviously can't experience everything I get to.

We have bought paint for the basement after sadly finding that there was none of the old colour left anywhere. It's nice in some ways because we will get to pick our own colour and can continue to slowly get rid of the colour they painted the WHOLE house. It's also stressful because we really have no idea what furniture will eventually end up down there. For now it will be a desk, bookcase and an old futon but eventually it will become  the tv room so it will house more furniture.  We don't want to go too boring but don't want to corner ourselves in with a CRAZY colour. So for now our paint is untinted waiting for us to decide...by next weekend. We've managed to hit a good number of sales with these renovations. Last weekend Rona had a promotion where you got 15% back in gift cards if you spent over 35$. I bought our underpadding (with our Rona gift cards we got with our Air Miles) and got 37$ back which then helped us to buy our paint and drywall mud and supplies.  The paint was buy 2 get one free and we will for sure need 2 maybe 3 for our basement so it was perfect!

Here are some updated pictures from this past week. The drywall is all up on the ceiling and the first round of mudding is complete. The pillars still need to be drywalled and then mudded.

Tom screwing some screws in tighter as he muds. 

View from the office part of the basement. Don't worry we have new lights.

And for those who want a bump picture here she be at 35 weeks and 3 days.

Baby Shower #1

So this past weekend Tom and I went home for what we plan to be our last trip before the arrival of our baby. I had a feeling it would be the weekend my family would host a baby shower for us but wasn't sure. We had also at one point talked about going back home again next weekend so I wasn't sure.

Well as it turns out it was this weekend. Early on Saturday morning my cousin semi let the cat out of the bag when he called to talk to my da. He said, "are you looking forward to this afternoon?" I replied "ya...". So I told Tom this and he did a great job of making me second guess it. He said while he was out with my dad that my dad asked if we were coming home next weekend and then said to make sure we did. So I began to question everything.

My sister N then arrived at my parents with her 2 kids and after a fast late lunch was quite insistent on going to the mall to exchange her daughter's snow suit for another size. She really wanted someone to go with her but no one else would go so I agreed. She was going to a baby/kids clothing store so I figured it would be research (they're having a lot of sales now!)

We head home and I say hi to Tom and my dad who were upstairs. Then my sister A yells from downstairs that my nephew wants his mom to come downstairs. N goes downstairs and brings my niece with her and I meander around upstairs avoiding going down....knowing full well what was going on now. Eventually they make my niece yell at me to come down and play with all the toys (just like she did for our wedding shower). I could no longer avoid it so I went downstairs and was greeted by great family and friends who love and support Tom and I.

We were so blessed with great generosity from everyone. Topping the list was our dresser and change table from my parents, sisters K and N, great aunt and grandma. Our baby at least has a place to store clothes and have his or her bum changed. Tomorrow we will go and buy our crib! Yah!! Things are coming together!

Stay tuned for pictures! I have to wait to get them from my sisters.

Here is a picture of the cake my sister K made.

Nesting Update Vol. 2

So I have no real nesting updates per say but I do want to talk about nesting. 

I have the desire to do this stereotypical 'nesting' that you read and hear about. But a barrier that is in my way is my adorable 4 and a half month old puppy Bauer. The majority of what I want to do involves me being in the upstairs part of our house where we do not allow him to go. Even if we did let him go there, I would not want him in the rooms with me because of the amount of organizing I have to do and the chaos that comes before organization can be achieved.

The 'biggest' job I want to achieve on my own is organizing our closets.  The one closet in our room is not big enough for both Tom's and my clothes so we have decided that I will keep the closet in our room and he will use the closet in the guest room. In addition we will also be adding a dresser to the guest room that he will use for cloths in addition to the dresser in our room.  Hopefully it works out for us.  But for us to achieve this I first need to remove everything from the guest room closet and put his clothes back in neatly.  Unfortunately this closet has become a storage room also since we've moved in.  It is also housing baby gifts we have received since we don't yet have a baby room.

Speaking of the babies room. We have finally decided on the furniture we are wanting.  So here it is. We have to order the crib (which Tom's parents are buying for us) and we registered for the dresser and change table. They aren't the same brand so we hope the colour ends up matching!  

Cloth Diapers

As a couple we have decided to use cloth diapers.  Tom wore them as a child and I'm not sure if I did or not. My sister has cloth diapered her 2 kids and has promoted it so we are jumping on the band wagon. Why not?  Out of everything baby related for some reason I am most excited about cloth diapers.  I cannot wait to get them and to play with them before baby arrives and then to use them once baby gets here. Maybe this makes me crazy but I'm just throwing it out there.

We have decided to give two types of diapers a try. The one we are hoping works well is a very economical choice with a cover and liners. It is the Flip system by Cotton Babies.  I like these because they allow you to reuse the covers more than once and therefore create less laundry than an all-in-one diaper.  I have read and watched many reviews on the Flip. Some people choose to use an all-in-one for day-to-day use but while travelling or  running errands use the Flip because it is more compact for travel. You can also buy disposable liners for travelling.  There are also a lot of people who choose to use the Flip system daily.  I am hoping we are one of these people and that they diapers work for us. For $60 you can get 2 covers and 6 liners - not bad!!


The second diaper system we registered for is an all-in-one. It was originally my first choice until my sister showed me the Flip system. It is a Canadian brand, Omaiki.  The all-in-ones they offer are great.

Check out the options with the Omaiki!!

The come with one liner which is attached at one end to the shell and a second liner can be snapped in for extra absorbency.  I liked these because they weren't pocket diapers like my sister used (which I didn't really enjoy) and had the versatility to switch to one or two liners. I also liked that the attached liner could move and wasn't stuck down like in some other diapers I had looked at, therefore allowing for quicker drying time.  What also attracted me to the Omaiki brand, besides being Canadian, was the colours! They offer a huge selection that drew me in. These are a bit more pricey at $28.50 a diaper at my local store.

So this is what we are looking at to start our stash of cloth diapers.  I have registered for 4 of the boxes of Flip diapers (so we will have 8 liners and 24 liners) which should do us at least a day and a half.  I also registered for 4 of the Omaiki all-in-ones and we would likely use these for overnight.  Of course all of this could change once our little one arrives and offers his or her opinion on our choice of diapers. I look forward to the adventure that lies ahead for us on cloth diapering and as parents in general!

Basement Update #1...Nesting Update Vol. 1

So a lot has been happening around here in the world of renovations and my attempts to nest while making sure our adorable puppy doesn't get into too much trouble. But he is just so darn cute!!  This picture is of him during our trip home for Christmas. We travel with him behind the back seat but he decided to climb over it and sit on our luggage. This forced us to set up a barrier with the baby gate so he couldn't do that anymore.  We're hoping he wont try to climb over onto the baby once he or she travels with us too!

So the basement renovations are going well. This past weekend Tom and two of his friends put up thermopan for our cold air returns, sound proof insulation and the vapour barrier. Next up is the drywall.  We ended up getting the drywall for $9.75 a sheet which saved us $4 over what we were planning to pay.  It was great to save money.  We now have almost everything purchased for the completion of the basement. We do need to pick up primer for the ceiling and we are hoping to find the paint the old homeowners had used to paint the basement to touch up the walls but we haven't looked yet.  Otherwise we'll need to buy paint for the walls.  We ordered some gift cards to Rona with our Air Miles and are waiting for them to come in. We will use that to buy the underpadding for the floor.  So our original goal of a February 1 end date might not happen. But for sure it will be done by February 18th we hope. That weekend is my baby shower here so my family will be coming down and they will help us paint the babies room and the ceiling in the basement if necessary.

Yesterday was the first day I felt  really accomplished in my nesting efforts.  Last week I had a few days of motivation.  I had organized our kitchen cupboards and made space in one of the pantries for Bauer's stuff. I have not achieved my goal of making room for bottles and baby things but we'll get there.  I also took the ornaments off the Christmas tree but that was as far as I went.  Friday I took the tree down and packed it all up. Yesterday I was onto my organizational kick and was able to cross off a number of items on my to-do list.  I organized our linen closet, and under the bathroom sink.  I also washed both the shower curtain and the liner so they are sparkly!!  We have one of those plastic shelving units in our bathroom as well so I reorganized that and emptied out a drawer that we'll use for baby bathroom items.  While I was doing these things I was also doing our laundry.  So needless to say I was EXHAUSTED before dinner.  I could feel myself getting tired so many times so I would try to slow down and sit down.  I likely did more than I should have but it felt great to cross these things off my list. 

Today is a more relaxing day. Tom is working so it's just Bauer and I. I have somethings I would like to do but nothing that is major and needs to be done.  Happy Sunday!!

Here is an updated picture at 32 weeks and 5 days.  As always I forgot to get Tom to take a picture so you never get to see a full shot but you at least get the baby!!

The Waiting Game

With two months remaining before our due date it seems now like we're playing the waiting game - in many different ways too!

We wait in the doctors office - for hours! This week I had an appointment at 2:15 and didn't see my dr until 4:30. Insanity! That shouldn't happen! So we wait for that.

We also weight gain! So far I've gained about 25 lbs which is inline with what my doctor told me I would gain. It's so weird to step on the scale and see how much I weigh. While I know my body is changing I don't feel 25lbs heavier.

Of course most importantly we wait for that moment when we will hold our little one in our arms and see what love has made and what little person God has blessed us with. We have been entrusted with a soul to care for and to guide and teach about God! Ahh what a fun and scary task that lies before us.

My favourite pregnancy moment this week was a moment that really showed me my changing body and how I need to change my mind about what I can and cannot do. I was talking to Tom on the phone while he was working. I had been sitting on the floor with Bauer and decided for some reason to lay down on my back. Then comes the inevitable - trying to get back up! This proved to be impossible with one hand holding the phone and one hand to help me up. I felt like a beached whale! I had to put the phone down to get up. I've also been experiencing a lot more big movements with our baby that at times can put me out! Our little one kicks my lungs and takes me breath away. I also have what my doctor says is nerve damage just under my sternum. It feels like my skin is raw and I get burning pain. Sometimes it shoots so badly it knocks me to the ground! If I move funny while laying down it can shoot pain too.

So all in all we cannot wait for the waiting game to be done and to meet our little one. But we will enjoy our time until then!

30 Weeks Part 2

So around 15 weeks I began to feel movement from our little one. It felt like bubbles moving around and was subtle but I knew it was our baby.  One time while laying on my side watching TV I felt a for sure somersault. It was so bizarre feeling. At this point Baby K favoured the left side of my stomach choosing to make a home there.  I felt most movement on the left side of my belly button.  This picture is 15 weeks and 3 days along.




I don't remember specific milestones from the next few weeks. But I do remember thinking time was moving slow and that I was growing so fast. Sometime around 17 weeks Tom felt Baby K move for the first time. That was truly awesome. We were laying in bed one night and I told him that the baby was moving.  He put his hand on my stomach and waited.  He felt a kick and his face lit up. I had been watching his face waiting for a reaction and it was amazing. Tears fell from my eyes and I was so happy that he could finally feel our baby.

At 19 weeks and 2 days we saw our baby for the first time.  That was amazing! To actually see our baby and to be able to see a head and nose and legs.  You can see an ultrasound picture here.


Another memorable moment was when we were on a cruise with Tom's family.  At this point I was 21 weeks along.  One night on the cruise, everyone was planning to hot tub and drink - both activities that I could not participate in. So I was a little bummed. I hung out around the hot tub for a bit but just got too tired and was frustrated so I went back to our room. While there I had a moment of feeling sorry for myself, and cried. Then I began reading while laying down and I rested my book on my belly.  After a few moments my book jumped. Our baby had kicked so hard it moved my book. It was crazy. I tried to catch it on camera but the baby didn't really cooperate. It seems our baby knew I was upset and wanted to cheer me up.

Since then our baby has been moving constantly.  S/he now favours the right side of my stomach.  We can now see where the baby is when I am laying down as that side will stick out more. It's so funny to see. We also could spend forever watching my belly move as our baby dances and moves inside.  Pregnancy has been good lately and I am very excited and cannot wait to meet out little one in just over 2 months!  


I always forget to get Tom to take a picture when I am dressed and not in pajamas so here continues my attempts at self portraits.  This was taken today at 30 weeks and  5 days.  Many people tell me I am carrying low....boy???

30 Weeks Part 1

*This blog was started on Monday, January 2nd.  As I was writing it I got a phone call from my mom telling me that my grandfather had passed away.  I was unable to continue writing it as much as I wanted to.  I spent time last week back home with my family and we had the funeral for my grandpa.  It is weird for me to think about how I now only have 1 grandparent remaining and that our child will (God-willing) only meet her and not the others. I realize that we were very blessed to have had our grandparents for as long as we did and I am thankful for each of them in my life.  And so I'll do my best to continue the blog......some of it was lost so I am having to rewrite.

So Tuesday (January 3rd)  marks 30 weeks into our pregnancy. It has certainly been an interesting adventure.
I thought I would take time now to reflect and recap on our journey so far as we prepare to meet our little one.  I wish that I had of done a better job recording milestones for this little one but you live and learn.

On July 7th, 2012  we took our first (and only) home pregnancy test.  I was only 2 days late but I knew something was up. I am normally like clock work - at most one day off so something was up.  I could just feel it. So we bought the test the night before and I was up early to pee on that stick.  I remember the time between doing my business and  looking at the result as a time of an outer body experience.  Even standing there looking at the test was weird. I felt like I was 100 feet above looking at Tom and I seeing the results.  Tom's reaction was great.  I think he was VERY surprised. He walked quickly from the bathroom and I chased him down half laughing and half crying.  It was a great day and we both felt so blessed.  We told both of our families by the Monday (something to do with me not drinking alcohol seem to be a reason to tell people).

My pregnancy started off good. I had dry eyes for a few weeks (even before we took the test) which apparently is a symptom because of changing hormones (who knew!).  Around week 6 though things started to change and I started to get nauseous. This lasted until about week 9.  I was so blah feeling and wanted to sleep all the time. I longed for food with taste but it was all gross. Many times I would begin cooking and stop because the smell was too much - chicken and rice are two culprits. 

Thankfully the nausea passed. Unfortunately, around week 12 or so nausea's friend vomiting made a visit. Weeks 12-15 were marked by trips to the bathroom to empty my stomach.  Mostly tomato based foods, salsa and tomato sauce, were what made me feel sick. However sugar was also a horrible one.  I had these candies, Preggo Pops, which are meant to stop morning sickness. For me they only encouraged it - many times it would stop the feeling of nausea but within minutes I would see meals again.  Thankfully as August came to an end so to did my morning sickness.

 

Here is the bump at 13 weeks and 5 days. 

   

Christmas Celebrations

Christmas weekend has come and gone. One thing for sure is it was different.

This was our first married Christmas and what will be our only Christmas without kids. It's so exciting to think about that. Christmas eve was interesting. My husband was working so I was home alone all day with Bauer. It was weird to not have preparations to do or anything. I tried to nap since we were going to midnight Mass but it didn't work very well. So midnight Mass was hard to get through. It was a joyful celebration of the birth of our Saviour. After Mass I managed to stay awake till 2:00 as we went back to the in-laws with family and friends.

Unfortunately that night Bauer came down with something and I was up at 3:30am and 5:50am with him. He had the runs and it was super bad! I felt so bad for him. So all day we worried about him and tried to figure out what we could do to help him. A little dinner of rice and ground beef seemed to help!

We were blessed to spend time with my husbands family Christmas day. We were also blessed greatly by my in-laws with amazing gifts! We were my expecting all that we got. We received: an iPod dock, Tim Hortons seasonal mugs, gift card for a maternity clothing store and for Home Depot. We were also surprised after all the presents were opened with a baby stocking for out little one. Inside the stocking was an I owe you for a crib from Nanna and Poppa. We were so shocked and overwhelmed to received this. This is the crib and furniture set we're thinking of getting. We would get it in espresso finish. http://storkcraftdirect.com/baby-products/convertible-cribs/tuscany-4-in-1-stages-crib/

Our goal for 2012 is to have our basement done by February 1 so that our new crib has a room to go in for our baby. Here's hoping it all goes according to plan!

Maximum Capacity

Holy cannoli!! Today I feel like there is no way my belly can expand anymore. Maximum capacity has been reached! Our little one must be growing like crazy because I feel so stretched! I have no idea how I will grow for 13 more weeks! I know it will happen but it makes me very nervous and worried about stretch marks! I have none so far but I feel like they will come. (hopefully not!)

Here's a picture from today. It's not the best. I took it afterwork so ignore my long johns under my pants. Regular shirts don't stay down anymore over le bump! My winter coat also fails to keep the bottom of le bump warm because it sticks out.

23 weeks and counting

So 23 weeks and 5 days in and we feel great! Here I am at 23 weeks and 3 days. Just a little update for today.

Half Baked!

So Tuesday marked the halfway point through our pregnancy! I am so excited to be further in then we have left - in theory at least. I am aware we are likely to be late since this is our first but a girl can dream. So halfway and things are going well. I'm feeling much better and have energy still. I feel huge but pictures seem to downsize me. I'm not sure if strangers know I'm pregnant or think I've just had too much too eat. I can't wait for my first stranger comment. So here she be - the bump at 20 weeks. Below is our baby at our ultrasound at 19 weeks and 2 days! Soo cute!

18 weeks and counting!

So close to half way! I cannot believe it but at the same time it already feels like I've been pregnant forever! I cannot imagine how I'll feel in another 20 weeks!

Our baby now weighs a half a pound! Crazy! S/he seems to be growing because so is my bump! I was at home visiting for 5 days over Thanksgiving weekend and my family thinks I grew from day 1-day 5. Tom believes so too! When I got home he was like 'wow you're pregnant!'

All this growing leads to uncomfortable me though. I have had pain in my mid to lower back and always on the right hand side. I've also had a lot of round ligament pain on the right of my belly. Blah! Add in pain at the bottom of my rib cage and you have one happy camper. Not to mention the lack of sleep due to being unable to fall asleep because of discomfort and waking up multiple times to empty the always full bladder I seem to have! It'll all be worth it in the end when we get to hold our little one in our arms.

We haven't done much or got much baby related yet. I've started researching cloth diapers and hope to decide by Christmas. We also plan to register for baby things by December. Fun!!! I know nothing about baby stuff so it's time to start researching and reading reviews.

Here is my bump at 18 weeks and 1 day! Again, it feels much bigger then it looks in pictures.

Grow baby grow!!

So today we are at 17 weeks! Almost halfway there! So hard to believe but so exciting! It's still hard to believe it's real - even with the ever growing belly, morning sickness (which has passed it seems - praise God!!), and low energy. It feels real when I feel the baby move. That is amazing! It's like little flutters in my stomach. I can't remember when I first felt them - around 15 weeks I would guess. In the beginning the baby seemed to favour my left side but the past few days s/he has moved over towards my belly button venturing to the right. it's crazy to think of how big our baby is. One website said from head to rump our baby is the size of my hand outstretched - oh my word! Then add legs!! Wow!

In two weeks we'll go for our ultrasound and I think that at that point it will begin to feel more real. Shortly after that Tom should be able to feel movements of the baby too which I can't wait for. Right now I feel bad that he can't feel our baby growing and moving.

Baby brain is a crazy thing. Most recently I tried to make orange juice Friday morning and failed miserably. I grab the oj can and opened it. I then grabbed the 'jug' and poured the juice in......to a pot! It was amazing and Tom had to document it. Excuse the weird look on my face and dark around my eyes. Blah!

Telling the Family

So as I said, we found out we were expecting 2 days before my birthday. Our plan was to wait till the end of July to tell our parents and siblings. That way we would have seen a doctor and be further along then 4 weeks.

That plan failed! My mom and 2 of my sisters A and L came down that weekend for my birthday. It was great to have them there! But what did they bring me for my birthday!? A bottle of wine and a bottle of sangria! We got through the gift opening without spilling it. Then they kept talking about drinking it that night.

My brain was spinning...how can I get around this!? I always drink wine! So Tom and I decided we should just tell them. I had no time to think of how to tell them. My sisters and I were messaging each other on whatsapp for fun - it was new to us and we were in a group chat. So in the message I said, 'I can't drink the wine you brought for 9 months.' They were like, 'really?' It took them awhile to believe me but they did. My mom was sitting there on the couch out of the loop and asked what was going on and I'm not sure how but we told her. Needless to say they were all excited and very happy for us.

Tom had to go to work at this point but we had to tell my dad and other sisters. We waited patiently for my dad to get off work and then we called him. We told him that Tom got me a puppy for my birthday and that we wanted to show him so to go on Skype. So he did. Once we were chatting I said that before I showed him the puppy I had some questions. So I asked him if he knew where the baby bath was that him and mom bought for my niece and nephew. He said ya it was around and I told him that we would need it in about 9 months. He got a HUGE grin on his face and congratulated me. We did the same thing to tell my sisters N and K.

We told Tom`s family the following Monday at a birthday dinner.  I think we caught them more off guard then my family! They were in shock but all very happy for us.  Tom told them when his brother was getting beer for everyone at dinner. He asked me and I said no. Then Tom said, `Katie can`t drink beer for 9 months.` It took them awhile to put it all together but they did!

All in all our families are excited for us! Both of us have always wanted to have kids so for most it was not a huge surprise.  I am so excited to see our little one and to show him or her off to everyone!

Life is moving fast

So I know it's been forever since I've posted and a lot has happened. Most importantly we found out we were expecting! Let me take you on a walk down memory lane this summer when we found out. Sorry if some is TMI!

So we got married May 21 and spent our amazing weeklong honeymoon in Jamaica! It was the most fantastic week of my life and so great to get to spend time together, alone, as husband and wife. That week also happened to be my fertile week;). So we joked going in that we would get pregnant that week. Well LO and behold 2 weeks later (June 7th) while in Ottawa to see my childhood heart throbs, New Kids on the Block, my period started. I had never been so sad in all my life. It surprised me how much I was hoping to be pregnant. I hadn't had any cramps or pain so I thought maybe?! But alas that was not the time.

With all that Tom had been through with testicular cancer, we were never 100% sure if he would be able to have kids - even though everyone said he would we were stil skeptical. In a lot of ways we wanted to have a child early on just so we knew that we were able to. We had discussed adoption and it was something that we were both open to but always wished it wouldn't come to it.

So fast forward to the first week of July. At work we were running our week long summer camp and I was patiently awaiting a visit from Aunt Flow. That week I was exhausted. I'd get home from work at 4 eat a snack and fall asleep till 10. I'd stay awake till Tom got home at 11 then sleep through the night. Weird but I thought the week was tiring. One of the teen volunteers told me one morning I looked tired - I thought, 'gee thanks! That means I look like crap!' I was cramping like mad! I was bitchy and frustrated at EVERYTHING! I was wondering why Aunt Flow was being extra mean before she made her entrance. Something was off though and I felt it. I knew something was different. I couldn't tell you what but something was telling me I was pregnant. If I had of got my period that week I would have had a mental breakdown! So that Wednesday Tom and I stopped at the store and biught yogurt and a pregnancy test. What a weird feeling that was to buy! The next morning Thursday, July 7th I awoke with a full bladder to pee on a stick! It was 6:30 so I woke Tom up so he'd be there with me. I did my business and three minutes later we see this:

I had told Tom before that 2 lines meant positive. Once I peed on the stick and capped it, I had put the box back on top of it so that it would be a big reveal.  We went back to our room and I'm not sure what we did or talked about......it's a blur. After 3 minutes though we did go back into the bathroom and after taking off the box, my heart started beating fast, Tom looked at me, and I was tearing up. He said to me, "What does this mean?" I said, "It means it's positive!" He immediately walked out of the room laughing! Of course I chased after him and we hugged and were excited! 

It took awhile to sink in. I had to go to work that day and it was so hard to focus. But I survived! So that is how we found out! It was a great gift 2 days before my birthday! So I will leave you with one more picture. This is of my baby bump at 13 weeks and 5 days. It's there and looks much bigger in real life...or feels much bigger. 

I'll post more often now with updates on how we told our families and updates on life since we had our positive test! It's been an adventure! One that I wouldn't trade for anything!  Oh yeah and our due date is March 14, 2012.