First Real Contraction

So, last night I felt my first *real* contraction. We had just gone to bed, and I was uncomfortable. Not the end of the world uncomfortable, but noticebly unpleasant. Then, I got up to take 1 of a million trips to the restroom, and my stomach was rock hard. And when I say rock hard, I mean you could have bounced a quarter off of it! It was crazy. I walked over to Dave, grabbed his hand, put it on my belly, and his response was "whoa!".

Last Monday I had them hook me up to a monitor because the discomfort I was feeling didn't feel like a contraction, it felt like someone was stabbing me...over and over again. But it lasted for about 90-minutes and was consistent. Pretty awesome. Needless to say, I wanted to know if that was my version of a contraction, or just the kid dancing on a nerve. Fortunately, it was the latter of the two. However, at the time I went in, I was having "mild" contractions and didn't even know it. According to the nurse, anything on the monitor over 20 is a contraction. If the number reached 30-40, that's a big deal and you should go to labor & delivery. Anything in the 50's, and the nurse said the baby is making its arrival. Mine were in the low to mid 20's which explains why I wasn't feeling them. Of course, when I got to the doctors office, the stabbing pain had stopped. Isn't that the way it always goes?

No more contractions since last night. This kid has switched positions and is dancing on another nerve that is quite unpleasant. Everytime he strikes, the pain startles me to the point that I am jumpy. It's crazy. What is he doing in there? I visualize him crawling towards the light and burrowing down.

This morning we participated in the "Walk To Remember". Fortunately, it wasn't raining. Unfortunately, it was INCREDIBLY humid. Holy cow! I wore jeans to cover up the "great white whales" otherwise known as my legs. So I was extra toasty. The walk was only a mile, which normally isn't bad. However, because the kid is dancing on a nerve, it made it a little less comfortable. It was nice to see some families from last year participating this year with big bellies or new babies. I'll post the pictures once they're available online.

That's all for now folks. 15-days until due date :)

Child of My Heart

Last year we participated in an activity called "Child of My Heart - Walk to Remember". This walk is not a fundraiser, but is a memory walk for families who have experienced a neonatal or infant death. (http://www.childofmyheart.org/)

This year the event is on Sunday, September 14th, and we will be participating again. At least that is the plan if the baby hasn't arrived. The walk is a one-mile walk around the University Circle area.

While a walk like this sounds sad, it was actually very uplifting for me. Over 200 people participated. Families there to support each other. Families who were walking in memory of one child, while pregnant again or pushing the stroller of another child. Other families waiting for their next blessing while remembering their lost baby.

This will be Danny's first year participating, albeit in utero. It will still be nice for him to know that each year, we will continue to do things to celebrate his sister.

Here is a picture from last year.

My Mom & Dad are on the left. Dave's Mom is in the middle, and Dave and I are on the right.

Super Quick Post

Just a quickie update for the day...

Most important is that we had our ultrasound this afternoon. Monkey is head down and no longer breech! Woo-hoo....While that doesn't guarantee anything, it sure sounds better then having a planned c-section.

According to the doctor, he has quite a bit of hair! Go figure, all that heartburn has been for the greater good. I was hoping so! Really, it's the only thing that keeps a smile on my face while it feels like battery acid is being poured down my throat.

Danny is weighing in at 6lbs 14oz. The doctor estimates that he'll be around 7 1/2 pounds. Perfect size. I was thinking he might be around 8 1/2 pounds based on him gaining a 1/2 pound a week for the next few weeks. I like the doctors estimate better. Either way, I'll take a big fat baby. As Dave and I are smiling about this, Dave reminds me that it's better that I'm the one pushing him out and not him. Thanks dear.

They tried to get a new 3D/4D picture of him...but he wouldn't cooperate. We did get an old school picture of his face, and holy cheeks! Even the tech laughed and said that he had fat cheeks. Oh, I just can't wait to squeeze them.

I am off to play with my new camera! We have been camera shopping most of the summer, and made our purchase last night. We bought the Canon Digital Rebel XTi. It's the super fast SLR type. I can't wait to learn all about it!

Another great day....

Today's Doctor Appointment

Today's appointment was pretty boring. Since the only contractions I'm having feel more like menstrual cramps, there was no need for her to do an internal...which I'm not complaining about since that is a bit uncomfortable. She does want me to get another ultrasound sometime between tomorrow and next Thursday just to confirm that he is head down. I can't imagine that he isn't at this point based on how it feels like he's doing the running man under my ribs, but I'll take it! Any opportunity to see the baby whether in 2D or 3D is welcome in my eyes.

Oh, and my ankles...wait let me correct myself, my "cankles"...wait nope, still not a good descriptor...how about I just say "where my ankles should be", look like giant elephant trunks. Holy hell is there a lot of swelling going on. I almost passed out when I saw how GARGANTUOUS they were. Especially the right ankle. When I showed the doctor laughing, she asked if I had ever had an injury on my right ankle. Yup. Several sprains from years of playing soccer, and then once when I slipped and fell in our garden.

So that's it. That was today's appointment in a nutshell. Nothing exciting. I go back next Thursday. My doctor seemed disappointed that I wasn't having more contractions. I'm ok with him cooking a bit longer. I still have a lot of work stuff to wrap up. Every extra day helps me complete more!

Nursery Pictures

I finally took some pictures of the nursery tonight. Everything is done...but one thing (or really three). We have three pictures that we need to hang. Then the nursery is done!

Here it is!

See the diaper bag hanging from the crib. LOVE IT. It says 'Shafer' on it ;) I'm that person. I love monogrammed stuff! The cream blanket on the left side of the crib, hanging over the side, is my first attempt at crocheting a baby blanket. I'll take a better picture of it sometime, but it actually came out half-way decent. If you look closely, it's full of flaws, but then again, so I am!

Another close-up of the dapper diaper bag. I love the monkey that is hanging from his crib too. Especially since I always call him 'monkey'. The sheets on the bed have little dog bones. The comforter on the left side of the bed has a stuffed animal dog on it, which is kind of hard to decipher in this picture. The mobile that is on the crib was a hand-me-down from Jodi that her kiddies loved! So is the other thing attached to the crib that makes noise. I'm telling you, being the youngest on both sides has reaped the rewards HUGE in hand-me-downs!

This glider is another awesome hand-me-down from my sister. Between the furniture and the glider, they really set us up big time! The picture on the left with all of the squares will be going above the changing table.

I meant to open the drawers and take a picture of how neat and organized they look *today*. You would not believe how many clothes this guy has. Between hand-me-downs and shower, I'm not sure there will be enough days in the first few months for him to wear everything! The picture on the left of the changing table will go behind the glider. Like all of the bags? Maybe I've overdone it. The diaper bag will have monkey's stuff in it. The black bag is for Dave. The purple bag is for me. And then of course the pillows and boppy that everyone keeps telling us we "have" to bring. Poor Dave will have to haul a lot of stuff in :)

The monkey picture on the book case will be going up on the wall behind the bookcase. And I think we are *maybe* going to put a mirror above the dresser. The basket on the bottom left of the bookshelf is full of diapers courtesy of a diaper cake Jodi made for us. The basket on the right is full of toys that we have been given. The top shelf, and part of the second shelf are FULL of books that I received at my first shower. The blue pig is a piggy bank from Dave's childhood that we will fill up, and the Ohio State blanket was a registry gift (all DAVE) that I have been told will be draped on the baby November 15th (I think).

Random Updates/Comments

So, I've been logged into work for a good part of the afternoon, and I'm bored to tears with this project. Basically, the super boring content of information, as well as the enormity & complexity of it all...just make me want to go into labor today so I don't have to finish. Horrible, I know.

We are 36-weeks today, so I won't be hoping for labor until at least ONE more week, when the kid is considered "Full Term". Yahooooo......

In the last week we met with two more pediatricians (finally picked one) and had another doctors appointment. I am officially 1 cm dilated. Dave was hilarious. He asked the doctor..."What does that mean? What do I have? Days, weeks?". She just smiled and said that we should have our bags packed. Which of course we have started...but not finished :)

My next appointment is Thursday. Can't wait for that AWESOME internal again. Wow, those feel the BEST. There is absolutely no sarcasm there. She might as well have been reaching for the stars while she was checking me out because DAMN...THAT HURT. But, the best news of all, monkey is NOT BREECH anymore. He turned. I swear, I think he turned Tuesday night. It was the craziest feeling at 2am I have ever had. I almost woke David up because it was so freaky.

This weekend has been FANTASTIC (minus being logged in for work...which is more my fault then anything). We had plans for Saturday night, and then I fell asleep on the couch...until 8:30 AM the next day. I did move to the bed, but that was about it. It was the best night of sleep I've had in I don't even know how long. Sunday was great, full of errands and such...and today we went and had the Lyndhurst Fire Department check out our car seat installation. That was very informative, and I highly recommend it.

Today, I mentioned to Dave that I was going to go to Giant Eagle because I wanted an Apple Pie. He volunteered, and went to Baker's Square. They were out of apple, so he brought home PEACH and STRAWBERRY RHUBARB! It tasted like heaven in between a buttery crust.

OK. That was a good break. Off to figure out dinner and then back to work :)

List of What I haven't Done...

I have said that I would post the following, and I still haven't!

1. Pictures of monkey's room.
2. Updates from family shower in August
3. Updates from work shower in August

Yeah.... Here's to hoping I actually get that done. I'll keep "planning on it".