A Ticking Time Bomb

That's what I feel like.

Everyone watches me like I am going to spontaneously combust. Which I guess I technically could - my water could break. It's kind of funny.

I think my body has been trying to go into labor by itself for 2 days now but it just can't figure it out. I don't know - it is kind-of annoying. I have a dr. appt. today so hopefully I will get an

induction date that is sooner rather than later.

Hopefully this is my last prego picture:

40 weeks 2 days

Trail Run

So tonight we took a trial run to Labor and Delivery.

No, I didn't think I was in labor. Trevor just didn't seem to be moving like normal the last couple of days and I wanted to have him checked out.

Remember on Friday how I ate pizza and walked and nothing was happening. Well, I woke up at 11:30 Friday night with the worst heartburn ever! Horrible, I tell you and I had taken heartburn medicine at 9 pm hoping to prevent it. I got up to watch TV to try to take my mind off of it.

Oh, just for the record, I didn't eat the pizza hoping to trigger labor. We were at April and Rick's and it was just what we did for dinner. I had heard that spicy pizza (and yes, I consider pepperoni pizza spicy) could help trigger labor so I thought maybe that plus the walk would do something. And it did all right - gave me the worst heartburn EVER and made my body cranky!

So I watch TV til about 1 am. During the TV watching I noticed that I was having Braxton Hicks and that they seemed to be getting pretty consistent. I didn't think too much of it because I just don't go into labor on my own so I figured they would stop. By 1 am I was tired so I went to bed. I woke up at 3 am with a really strong contractions. They actually got me thinking that maybe, just maybe, something was happening.

But by 4 am, they stopped. Stinkin' things. Got me all excited and then nothing.

So, since then Trevor just didn't seem to be moving like normal. I kept thinking I should go in to L&D but I felt like I was over-reacting or something. He was moving - just didn't seem "normal." But today, I could stand it no more so we went in.

And of course, as the nurse was putting the monitors on my tummy, he nailed her 3 times with some good kicks. Great - make me look like I am crazy!

But after he settled down from the monitors being put on, he was calm, too calm. His heart rate was in the normal range but it didn't have any of the fluctuation that they want to see. He wasn't moving around.

So she had me drink cold water. Nothing.

She had me turn on my side. Nothing.

Ok, now I am not looking so crazy.

She brought me some juice. She said she also called the dr. and the dr. ordered an ultrasound to make sure Trevor was ok and that he had enough fluid around him.

But by the time the guy showed up to take me to the ultrasound, Trevor was bouncing off the walls. Apparently, he just needed a little sugar (which I had tried before we went in). He was all over the place.

We decided to go ahead with the ultrasound just to make sure everything was ok. We were already there, so why not? Everything was great. He scored an 8 out of 8 on the test they did. Way to go Trevor! It was really cool because one of the things they look for is the baby to be "breathing." And he was breathing a ton - it was really neat to see. You could see his lungs expanding and contracting.

So, apparently the problem was that I wasn't drinking enough fluids. Big surprise there - we already know I have a fluid intake issue. I guess these upper 90 - 100 degree days are catching up with me.

After filling me up on water and juice, Trevor has been moving around all evening. He is one happy camper.

Baby Update

So I went to the dr yesterday and there has actually been some change. Woo Hoo! This is the earliest I have been 2 cm dilated so maybe, just maybe, I MIGHT do this on my own. That is a very big "might."

Tonight I had spicy (meaning pepperoni) pizza and then took a walk with the kids. So far . . . nothing.

The kids keep rubbing my belly and bribing Trevor to come out. If this boy plays his cards right, he could have some pretty good deals waiting for him when he arrives!

The good news is that the dr. said if I was still prego at the end of next week that he would induce me. Woo Hoo!

The not so great news is that the hospital that I am delivering at has an interesting induction reputation. The dr said he tried to call to get someone in yesterday and they didn't have an opening until Tuesday of next week. Hmmmm . . . 5 days later? Interesting. I have a friend who's sister went in to be induced and was admitted and given the iv and then nothing. They got to busy to induce her so she sat there for 24 hours before they actually induced her. Interesting.

The other kicker is that my dr is on vacation until next Thursday. I have an appt on Friday to see him but if he calls Friday to schedule me, I may not get in til the following week. He said he would call Wednesday to schedule it but is he really going to remember? Probably not.

So, Trevor, if we could just do this on our own, that would be great. What do you say?

Best Buddies

Aren't they just adorable?

Ok . . . I'm Done!

I love you Trevor but it is time for you to GET OUT!

Momma needs her body back! PLEASE!

Unfortunately, according to my last two dr. appts, it doesn't look like Trevor or my "baby baker" is in any hurry to deliver. Soooo, he will probably follow in his siblings footsteps and go over due.

I have 9 days until my due date and then the dr. will probably have me go past that and then the weekend falls in there so . . . I guess we are looking at at least 14 more days. At least 2 more weeks. Seriously? (Honor, you are probably going to have Isla before I have Trevor!)

I just don't know if the rest of me can make it!

I have swelling like I have never had before.

I have heartburn like crazy.

My legs and arms feel heavy.

I have no energy.

My legs hurt.

My hips hurt.

My back hurts.

Every time I eat, I feel sick.

I am not sleeping. (I know - getting ready for when he is born but come on, I'M TIRED!)

I know, I know - all normal end of pregnancy joys. It is just so hard when you are tired and done.

Kurt so nicely pointed out to me that I am older with this pregnancy. Nice honey. Those are some pretty dangerous words to say to an exhausted prego lady. Good thing I am too tired to come over there and kick your booty!

I have tried so hard not to whine to Kurt because he has been working soooo hard. He has been so busy and stressed that I haven't wanted to bother him. So I just keep going like nothing is wrong. I just keep doing all the things that need to be done. I just keep going. But I have to say that I think I am just about done. I think this is the week when my body is going to say "no more!" So if you stop by my house it is likely to be a mess and the laundry is likely to be all over but oh-well. I can only do so much and right now the "much" isn't very much.

Ok, so on to more happy things. Here is what we have been up to lately.

Here is me at 38 weeks 2 days (last Friday):

I have been blessed with 2 wonderful baby showers. I have the most wonderful friends and family and they have just been so generous! I think I have everything we need for Trevor and I think it is all ready. The only thing I need to do is test out the car seat in the car but other than that, everything is ready. I haven't gotten all the pics from the baby showers yet. When I do, I will post them.

We have been doing a lot of this (first video) and Kurt taught Evan how to do this last weekend (2nd video):

Ya, he is only 5.

We got to see Brittany and baby Kennedy on Friday. Kennedy is almost 4 months old and is so cute!

Evan was so excited to hold Kennedy. He can't wait to be a big brother. He asks me everyday, several times a day "when is Trevor going to be born?"

If only I knew Ev. If only I knew!

It’s about time for me to place my order

Yes, I would like to order 1 scheduled induction sometime after July 6th, preferably on an even day (all my kids are odd months and even days). I would like it to be pain free with no pushing. Thank you very much and I look forward to receiving my order.

Now, don’t you laugh! Just such a delivery exists - I have had one. And I would REALLY like another.

Kayla’s birth was not like that . . . at all. I have mentioned before that she was 2 weeks late and when I was admitted into the hospital to be induced, I was dilated to a 0. Yep, nothing was happening. They warned me that it would be a rough battle. We wanted to go “natural” but by the time I got to 5 cm, I was loosing it. I had tried walking, the ball, the shower, etc. and I was at my breaking point so I got an epidural. Hello, epidural! I love you! By the time she was born, I had been pushing for 2 hours, they had turned my epidural off at some point and I was feeling everything again, I was throwing up, Kayla’s heart rate was dropping and they were threatening an emergency c-section. As a last attempt they used the vacuum to help delivery her and she was born. No wonder this kid has anxiety - her entry into this world was anything but calm.

Hailey’s birth was much better. She was due November 2nd and on the night of November 3rd, I woke up at about 11 pm thinking “oh man, I have to go to the bathroom and I really don’t want to get up.” I was laying there trying to convince myself to get up and go when I felt a little gush, not enough to get the bed wet but enough to make me jump up. I honestly thought my bladder had leaked. I was mortified to say the least. Thank goodness I have a husband who sleeps through everything! I got up, went potty and changed. Then I noticed that I was damp again. Hmmm. Brain started thinking about this. You always hear of the water breaking as a big flash flood but I had a trickle. Could it be my water leaking? I woke Kurt up. Now you need to know that Kurt will do anything for anybody at anytime . . . but if it is in the middle of the night, you need to get the boy to wake up first - good luck. I shook him and said “I think my water is leaking.” His response (without even budging) “your fine, go back to sleep.” So I changed again and sat there. Sure enough, I was damp again. Tried again to wake him and got “your fine, go back to sleep.” At this point I just called L&D. That woke him up! We went in and they looked at me like I was making it up. It took a little bit but finally they did believe me. I wasn’t having any contractions but since my water had “broken” they had to keep me. They had me walk the halls and finally at some point, they started the pitocin. I knew this time I wanted an epidural and so when they said the Epidural God was down the hall and asked if I wanted mine, I said “YES!” The greatest part was that the contractions weren’t hurting yet. So I got my epidural. At about 8 am, the dr. came in and I was at about 6 cm. She broke the rest of my water since it hadn’t fully broken. I called my parents (who were with Kayla) and said that it would be a couple of hours and they could come whenever they wanted and then I told Kurt to go get some breakfast from the cafeteria. I was all alone when I felt a weird pressure. I buzzed the nurse who came in and checked me. She started running around. “Don’t cough, sneeze, laugh, or move. The baby is right there and we need to get the dr back.” Um, what? I called Kurt on his cell and told him to come back RIGHT NOW and then I called my parents and told them to hurry to the hospital (they were suppose to be there when she was born). I swear, people come out of the walls when you have a baby. All of the sudden the room was full of people. Kurt came running in after leaving his breakfast in the cafeteria and in 2 pushes, Hailey was born. My parents missed it by seconds. They came in just as Kurt was cutting the cord. What a difference from Kayla’s delivery. Hailey wants me to add that Kurt didn’t get to drink his hot chocolate and to this day, he always tells Hailey on her birthday that she owes him a hot chocolate. She is his “hot chocolate” baby.

Now, Evan’s delivery was the best. I was induced because I was overdue. We checked in and I immediately told anyone who came into my room that “yes, I do want the epidural.” When the dr. came in, I made sure he knew too but his answer was “you have to be in active labor.” When he left, I looked at Kurt and with pure panic in my face (as he retells the story) I said “active labor? But that might hurt.” He said “well, your having a baby. What did you expect?” Honestly, I expected Hailey’s delivery - the no pain method. This ‘active labor’ stuff sounded crazy. But as it worked out, the contractions weren’t hurting when they finally offered me my epidural. Awesome! So I got the epidural and then the rest of the day we relaxed. Seriously. We were prepared this time. We rented movies the night before and brought Kurt’s lap top. I slept all day and Kurt watched movies. The dr would come in and sit next to Kurt on the couch, put his feet up on a chair and ask “what are we watching now?” or “how long do you think I can hide in here before they find me?” It was great. I think I was the most checked on patient that day! Evan was the same - I was about 6 cm when they broke my water and I delivered in about 10-15 minutes. I felt that weird pressure and called the nurse. Of course, it had to be right when the nurses where changing their shifts and no one was available to come in. I kept buzzing the nurses and when one finally came in, she did the same thing. “Don’t move, breathe, sneeze, cough or laugh. The baby is right there.” So the dr came in and Evan just came out. I didn’t even push. See - pain free and no pushing. Awesome.

So that is what I am going for. A replay of Evan’s delivery.

Please!

Pretty Please!

With a cherry on top!

Memorial Weekend was Memorable

We went camping for Memorial Weekend and, as usual, we had no reservations. Gotta love just winging it. Ok, the dad's like just winging it. The moms? Not so much. I thought we had a site but as we were driving out of town I was informed that we "knew" of some sites but that we didn't "have" a site. Lovely. Turns out it worked out just fine but still, I don't like the unknown. The site was a first-come-first-serve-dry camping site and we were the only ones there Thursday night.

Friday we got up and went to Mercer Caverns in Murphy. It is 16 stories down and 16 stories back up. Luckily they stop a bit on the way up to show you different things so you get to rest.

Here we are going down into the cave:

Evan in the cave

As you come out of the cave, they had you bumper stickers.

You can see where Kurt stuck his.

At least it didn't say "wide load" or something.

Friday night we spent in the ER with Evan.

He gets really congested when the weather changes from warm to rainy and that has been the crazy weather we have been having here in CA. Warm then rainy, then warm, then rainy. A few days before we left, it was rainy again and he was congested. Friday night his cough got more persistent and hacking. During dinner he wasn't acting like he felt good and it looked like he was having a little trouble breathing (he was laying on my lap and his stomach/chest looked like his breathing was labored). When I laid with him to put him to bed, his breathing was really fast and shallow. I called Kurt in and he didn't like it either. We decided to take him to a dr. Turns out the closest ER was 45 minutes away. So at 9:15 pm we left for the ER. Arrived at 10 pm. Got in triage at 10:30 and his oxygen level was low (you know the little finger thingy they put on). Not dangerous low but lower than it should have been. We got into a room at 11 pm. Then we sat and sat and sat until 1 am when the dr. finally came in. He listened to his breathing and called a respiratory therapist. He gave him a breathing treatment. The dr. thought he sounded better but still congested so he ordered x-rays. The 1st set was cloudy and they thought he might have pneumonia. They took a 2nd set, this time with his pjs and sweatshirt opened and they came back totally clear. They think he has asthma so they gave us an inhaler and told us to follow up with his primary. We left a little after 3 and arrived back at our trailer at 4 am. We were a bit tired the next day, to say the least. We just hung out at camp and napped.

Here's Cody just hanging out.

Here is the little boy feeling better.

Sunday we went to Calaveras Big Trees State Park and walked on the trail. It is a really easy walking trail that is 1.5 miles long and takes you through some amazing trees. Absolutely beautiful!

Here is our group standing on top of a HUGE tree trunk that was cut down.

We were here exactly 2 years ago but then there was no snow. This time, a little snow.

Kayla and a massive tree.

Hailey playing in a tree.

Walking in a tree.

My man in a tree.

This was a tree recently hit by lightning. It was amazing to see the force that exploded the tree. Mother Nature is powerful!

On the way home we went past our camp site and further up the road to see what was there. We found some beautiful waterfalls.

Our journey ended when the snow overruled the road. Of course, the kids had to get out and play.

When we got back to our camp site, we walked the trail that goes along the river. Absolutely beautiful, again.

Hailey picked up a slug.

We had a great time but I am exhausted.

Now it is time to focus on getting ready for Trevor. Only 5 weeks left! Hopefully more - if he is like his siblings. They were all late and I am hoping he will be too.