What to do...

Warning: graphic pregnancy post!
I wasn't sure I was going to post about this, but then I thought...this blog is suppose to be about all the things that happen with my pregnancy, so that includes the good the bad and the ugly.
Anyway so this weekend starting on Friday I had a case of the runs, not that big of a deal except it got worse as time went on and was what I would call fairly moderate on Sunday. I was starting to get worried and decided I should call the doctor on Monday morning, which I did, but by then I was feeling pretty much better. The advice nurse told me I should have come in on Sunday because sometimes diarrhea is a sign of pre-term labor and that if it happens again, I should just go to labor and delivery instead of waiting to talk to OBG which is closed on the weekends.
So I guess I should have gone to the hospital, though I am feeling pretty good now (stomach is still not %100, but getting there). It is so hard to know, what is a danger signal and what is just the normal course of pregnancy? When am I being rational and when am I being a basket case? Life’s great mysteries! So, we are still on the watch, but I think I am ok.

Soccer player

The little tike has been kicking like crazy lately, really strong kicks! Maybe I'll try and get a video of my tummy moving because it is out of control. It seems like he is trying to kick his way out of the side of my stomach, not the most effective of methods but he is young and learning. Yesterday I was sitting and watching my belly (I get so much work done) and my stomach was literally moving inches with each kick, it is fun in an uncomfortable sort of way.

New House

We moved into our new house (rented) this weekend!!! I am really excited, I think it will be a great place to start our little family. We are still in Simi Valley, just further west which means a slightly longer commute (again!), but we are closer to my parents which should be fun when the little guy shows up. I have taken some pictures of the place, but our downloading cables are packed up somewhere, so I will have to post them later. Now we just have to settle in and have everyone over for a good suburban BBQ sometime this August.

Some Shower Pics

I didn't get to many pics from the shower, so if you did get some good ones I'd love to see them, but here are a few I did get.

32 weeks

This is me a week and a half ago...I am even bigger now of course!

Class week 9

This week we finished up learning about breastfeeding and then talked about some postpartum care of me. Teaching people about breast feeding before they have a baby is kind of like teaching someone how to ride a bike without a bike, but hopefully we soaked up some information and I know Kaiser has lactation consultants around to help get us started as well. Apparently in the beginning (when I am feeding him 12 times a day) I should not expect to do anything except feed him, change him and catch whatever sleep I can get. We learned a bit about colic (which I think Mike had as a baby) and just general recovery tips for me after the birth. We also talked a bit about C-sections and different things you can request to help aid recovery and hanging out with our baby sooner (hopefully we won't need that info). Just one more class to go, and then we will know everything a new parent could possibly want to know (ha ha).

Doctors Visit

Went to the doctor yesterday and everything looked great. My bloodwork was good, no anemia or diabetes (both are common with pregnancy). I had gained 10lbs (!!) in the past 5 weeks so no worries about me not gaining enough weight anymore. I am most definitely a pregnant lady.
It was kind of frustrating because when we talked to our doctor about some of our wishes for our birth, she seemed to roll her eyes a bit (those damn hippies with their natural births). I guess she is in the business of medicating people, but it would be nice if they were a little more open minded about everyone wanting their birth experience to be in line with what is important to them. We understand that sometimes medical interventions are necessary for the baby's safety, we just want to use them as a last resort. Anyway...it seems like it will be an up hill battle, but I think we will be able to stick to our guns (that is why we hired a doula!).

Count down

We are under 2 months left till the little guy arrives and let me tell you, that is not feeling like a lot of time. We just started our 33rd week, which means even if he was on the early side but still full term (38wks) he could be here in 6 weeks (eeeeeeek!). That is not a lot of time, let me tell you. Especially since we are still very much in the process of moving (though hopefully the move will get done this weekend, then there will just be the settling in). It is funny, it really does feel like I have been pregnant for a really long time at this point, but I am not at the stage where I just want him out of me. As far as I am concerned, he can stay in side as long as he wants.

visit to Bay Area

So this past weekend we had a really nice visit up to the Bay Area, we got to see my sis Carrie and her family plus Mike's cousins and we had a great little picnic on Sunday in the park where everyone got to run around and play. The Bensens brought Botchy (sp?) Ball which was a big hit and there was badminton and soccer and Frisbee as well and everyone chipped in some food (Thanks Carol, Carrie, Sherry, Laurie and Olivia!!). It was really great to see everyone. We didn't take any pics the whole weekend (we are the worst, we better be better when this kid shows up!) and the pics from my shower last weekend are still on my camera, but they will get posted, I promise!

Baby Shower

Vickie and my mom threw me a fabulous shower this weekend, it was totally special. The back yard looked beautiful (special thanks to Carrie and my Aunt Jeanie for flying in and making everything look amazing and to Carol and Lacey for also flying in for the event), the food was delicious and the people were great and I think everyone had a good time (I certainly did). We played some baby games, we had to guess the names of the babies for each associated animal (like what is a baby hawk called, exc). I was terrible at that game! People also had to guess the circumference of my tummy which was fun, it got down to the wire, but my mom's friend Shirley ended up taking the honors on that one. Everyone was so generous, I got all kinds of useful baby stuff (car seat, stroller, sling, baby carrier, baby monitor, breast feeding pillow...), some great baby toys (thanks Robin!), some super cute clothes (including some hand knit hats from Lacey and Carol) and blankets...I was overwhelmed with everyone's kindness.
I'm still not ready for the little guy to show up, but when he does he will have cute stuff to wear and I will be able to get him home from the hospital! When I get some pics off my camera I will post them (and send me pics if you got any good ones).

Class weeks 6&7

So since we were in Vancouver last week, we had two classes this week (3 couples missed week 6, so our instructor did a make up class). These two classes were all about choosing your pediatrician, the medical tests/interventions they do right after birth, and immunizations. It was interesting to learn all of the "standard" procedures, what they are for and why we might want to not do them or put them off. For example, it is standard practice to give the Hepatitis B vaccine right at birth, but unless you are sexually active or using dirty needles, it is almost impossible to get Heb B. So why give the vaccine to your newborn, why not wait a few years? It was pretty overwhelming actually, because I have been focusing on getting this little guy out into the world and that is really very much just the beginning of this whole adventure. There are so many choices about parenting (how long to breast feed, how should you deal with getting the baby to sleep, where should the baby sleep, should you carry your baby as much as possible, when to start solid foods, when to get vaccinated, when to go to the doctor and get antibiotics...) it is enough to make my head swim and to be very happy for these last two months before the game starts for real.

Trip to Vancouver

I know we didn't post anything last week, but that is because we were on a fabulous trip to Vancouver. I can't believe how much we fit into last week, traveling all around the city, 4 ferry rides up the coast and to Vancouver Island and great visits with some of our favorite people. Here is a small sample of pictures from the trip.

Good News

Today, we had some good news. We hadn't heard back from the hospital since we had our most recent ultrasound, so today, Mandy called our doctor to find out what's up.
Apparently, hospitals are quick to call you when you have a 1 in 1500 chance of something going wrong, but neglect to call you when the news is actually good.

Turns out that the placenta has moved. This means no more placenta previa! (see "End of second trimester" post for brief explanation). This means that we currently have no medical reason to have a c-section. This is fantastic news for us! Nobody wants a c-section, and although it isn't the end of the world if it happens (there are sometimes other very real medical reasons for a c-section), we are glad that we won't be forced to have one.

Secondly, there was no indication of anything that may suggest our kid has trisomy-18. Apparently, the radiologist didn't say anything about the cyst to the doctor, and that there was no abnormalities to comment about. He's still the perfect size for a September 15 delivery. So all is good on that front too!

Of course, as new parents, there are lots of things to worry about. But of course, so many of the problems are rare. We are taking good care of ourselves and keeping our fingers crossed. But today was good to get some good positive news!