Baby shower and an update

Ha ha, tricked you, the baby isn't here yet! I went in for another appointment last week and they sent me home to do some lab work and they set up an inducing date for today. Well I got a call this week that said my lab results came back and they looked really good so they didn't feel like I needed to be induced quite yet. I was so relieved! At first I had felt good about getting induced this week, I was really excited. I felt like I was ready, and I felt like our little boy would be ready as well. But once they actually told me I was going to be induced, I panicked big time. She told me they'd want me to come in the night before and start me on some medication and then more medication the next day. Now I am all for getting an epidural, but other than that, I am not comfortable with so many other medicine interventions. Especially once I got home and found out that the medicine they wanted to put me on the night before isn't even FDA approved. I started praying that I would get good news on my lab results and that hopefully our boy would decide to come on his own. I am so glad that he is able to stay inside me for a bit more and keep growing. They estimated him to be 6 lb. 10 oz. at my  ultrasound yesterday, so he is a good size at this point, but I really would like to use as little medication to get him here as possible. That said, they are still planning on inducing by 39 weeks. But I do feel like he could come on his own before then.
My appointment yesterday was bittersweet. Our favorite midwife is moving to the East coast in a few days and we had our last appointment with her. She kept getting all teary eyed, which made me all teary eyed. I could tell she was so sad to be leaving. She really wants our baby boy to come this weekend so that she can be there for the birth and she kept talking to him telling him to come out already. She was the first one to give us an ultrasound when we found out we were pregnant, she was there for me when I needed to share my worries, and she truly became a friend. It was hard to give her a hug and say goodbye. Who knows, maybe we will move up there for dental school and she will deliver our next one.
Moving on.... a few weeks ago my sisters and mom threw me a baby shower. I knew it would be really cute because they are all so creative, and I was right! The theme was an elephant baby shower, and the colors were turquoise and orange. They spent so much time decorating and making everything perfect for me and the baby, it really turned out well and I had a lot of fun! Here are some pictures from the day:

We had the baby shower out on the back patio since the weather was nice. Everyone fit perfectly underneath it. Lots of friends and family members that came below:

 We played a matching game where you match the name of the mother animal to the name of the baby animal and then they all wrote out wishes for our baby. Gabe and I had a fun time reading them all that night. I hope it is something that our boy will cherish one day.

Everyone guessed how many circus peanuts fit around my belly...

It was NOT 64 Abby, thankyouverymuch :)

 Chelsy and my mom worked on decorating these cookies for 6 hours the day before while I was "bed-resting" on the couch in the next room. They turned out very cute!

 The baby shower favors - little boxes filled with peanuts. They said, "Thanks for stomping by!"

Me and my lovely sisters. Thanks for throwing me and baby to be a party and for everyone who came, I had a blast!

36 Weeks

No picture today. Blame it on the bed rest.

How far along?   36 weeks

Total weight gain:   +30

Maternity clothes?   I survived this pregnancy with one pair of maternity pants and one maternity shirt. I won’t need any more because I’ll be lounging in my jammies.

Stretch marks?   Nope, lucky me!

Sleep:  Is alright. I wake up a few times a night to get up and the summer heat makes it harder to get comfortable, but we have been sleeping out on the couch so the AC can blow right on us.

Best moment this week:   My baby shower my sisters threw for me, and getting all our last minute things ready for our little one. I’ll be posting pictures soon. 

Miss Anything?    Yes, just being able to normally function and take care of myself and cook and clean for my husband would be nice. But sacrifices must be made, and life will have a new normal soon. (An even better normal I feel.)

Movement:   Yep, he still likes to wiggle around. He likes to tickle my hip bones and push his bum into my ribs. It’s getting squishy in there, and there are less kicks and more stretching movements. I’m loving his little hiccups, they are becoming more and more frequent and they make him squirm all over.

Food cravings:   Popsicles and cold ice cream. My new craving are those little bowls of knock-off dip n dots in the freezer section. I could eat those all day! Mmmmmm….

Anything making you queasy or sick:   Just some normal nausea because I’m nearing the end of pregnancy  

Gender:   Boy!

Labor Signs:   That’s a yes this week. A lot more braxton hicks contractions. Last Thursday, (for those of you that know how labor progression works) I was 1 cm dilated and 80% effaced. That’s great! I feel like I’m even further along now.

Symptoms:   Oh just a general uncomfortable-ness and “I’m done”-ness. I think I’ve been able to experience all of the pregnancy symptoms that are possible, even if only for a week.

Belly Button in or out?   Half and half. It’s going to be so weird to see what my belly looks like after birth!

Wedding rings on or off?   Off L sad day. But I can’t go out and about anyways, so it’s just a bummer to me.

Mood:   So very excited to meet our little boy!! He is almost here and we are so very anxious. Cannot. Wait.    

Looking forward to:   Delivery day!!!

Random Ramblings:

**We get to meet our baby next week, holy cow. That’s right, next week! Since I have high blood pressure now, our midwives still want to induce me around 37 weeks. At this point, it’s safer to have him out than in. They think I would spontaneously go into labor around 37 weeks anyways. At my Monday appointment next week we will schedule our inducing day. It’s actually quite frustrating that we have to wait so last minute to find out the day, but what can you do. We are shooting for June 30^th, I’ll be 37 ½ weeks along and our favorite midwife is on call that day. If not, then the 27^th is our second choice. I’ll keep you updated.

**I’m getting a little nervous about labor and being induced. I hope it all goes very quick! But I do find great relief in knowing that I am getting an epidural. It’s also nice to plan to be in the hospital the whole time and to have people there to help and support me.

**Online shopping is great. Since being on bed rest it’s the easiest way to get the rest of the things we need, plus it’s just exhilarating for some reason. I am a believer that babies really don’t need very many things to be happy and comfortable. But, I’m ordering a few extra helpful items just in case J

**We cannot wait to introduce you to our little bundle next week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This guy is the BOMB.

Gabe took the DAT last week. For those of you that don't know, that's the dental school entry exam. He worked his butt off non-stop for a full month after school got out, studying all of the time. His hard work paid off, because he did extremely well! And I get to brag about him because I'm his wife :) He ended up getting in the 99th percentile in the nation!!! We're very excited and hope that that will get us into whatever school he wants to go to. Now he just has to finish up the application process, which isn't the most fun, and then we wait. And wait. He will fly out to schools in the fall for interviews and then we probably won't hear back from any of the schools until winter. Can't wait to see what is in our future!

The Birthday Boy!

Happy 25th birthday to the sweetest guy around. Every single day I feel entirely blessed to have him in my life. He works incredibly hard for our family and is a great example to me. I love you Gabe!!!!! May I make you as happy as you make me.

James E. Faust said: "I urge husbands and fathers of this Church to be the kind of men your wives would not want to be without."  

--  You are the kind of man that I do not want to be without.

34 Weeks

Alright folks, I believe it is time for an update don't cha think? I have no picture to share today, but I can reassure you that I don't think it looks much different than the last picture update. Sorry... it's all for good reasons.
We have had a bit of excitement these past few days. Saturday I was sitting at home by myself working on the mobile to put above the baby's crib and all the sudden got really light headed and felt like I was going to pass out. I got a really bad migraine soon after. It really worried me because I was home all alone. I just shook it off and went on with my day trying to take it as easy as I could. I felt a little woozy in the head all weekend and just felt a little light headed and "off." I decided on Monday that I should probably call my midwifes and let them know. I talked with one of the nurses and she didn't seem super concerned about it so I told her that I would wait until the next day to see how I felt. I got a call back from the office about 10 minutes later from one of the midwifes saying that she wanted me to come in that day and get checked.
Once we got there she checked my blood pressure and it was high. It has been a bit higher the last few times that I have had appointments and with the light headedness and other symptoms that I had been having, she sent us over to the hospital to be monitored.
They hooked me up to the monitors checking the baby's heartbeat and for any contractions. They gave me a steroid shot in the butt to help develop baby boy's lungs quicker in case he decides to make an early arrival. They drew blood for a few tests and I stayed there for the next 24 hours in which I had urinate in gallon jugs for testing. Fun huh? They came in every few hours to check my blood pressure and more often to move the monitor around. That happened all throughout the night. My midwife gave me a small sleeping pill, but I don't think I felt the effects at all. I just sat and stared around the room listening to the baby's heartbeat. The thumping is still radiating in my ears.
To sum things up, they tested my urine to see if I was passing any protein and it came back with good numbers. The blood tests also came back with good results. We were SO relieved! My blood pressure is still a bit out of control, and if that gets out of control then a lot of other problems can occur, so they put me on bed rest and diagnosed that I have mild pre-eclampsia. It affects 5-8% of pregnancies. I have to do nothing all day, we will see how it goes. I was so excited to get home from the hospital today, shortly followed by a lot of stress thinking about all the things that need to get done around the house. It will be interesting for sure. My sweet mother is going to be taking care of me on bed rest while Gabe is at work during the days. Thanks mom :D I will be going in twice a week to my midwifes now. Twice to take a non-stress test where they monitor the baby, and once a week for an ultrasound to check amniotic fluid levels. Yay for ultrasounds!!!!!!!!!
As far as it looks right now, the baby will most likely come before 40 weeks. I am hoping for 37 or 38 weeks. I think I just might go crazy if I have to last any longer than that. And I think that about covers it. Wish us luck in this last bit of pregnancy. Especially that I won't freak out more than is needed. I've got to realize that some things are more important to prep than others.
As for those that are able to make it to my baby shower, I apologize in advance for sitting on a lawn chair the whole time :) But at least you know now why. I am just glad that I have the go ahead to still make it to my own shower. I'm excited to see you all!