Crazy Contractions!

Wednesday, March 16 - Shortly after going to bed, I felt a few minor contractions. They were few and far between (15-20 minutes apart) so I didn't think much of it. But I did have high hopes that maybe this baby could be born on St. Patrick's Day!

Thursday, March 17 - I decided to go to work since there wasn't much action come morning. The day went fine and I was able to tie up any loose ends just in case. Then that evening we went to Roma (a local Italian joint) to eat some greasy pizza in hopes that it would help move things along. That evening, again shortly after going to bed, my uterus starting contracting. Only this time the contractions were closer together (5-8 minutes apart). That's when I decided it would be best if I stayed home from work on Friday.

Friday, March 18 - Kyler woke up at the usual 6:00 and wanted to snuggle in the bed with the baby and I. Then he asked if he could sing to the baby. I said, "Sure! What would you like to sing?" He enthusiastically and unprompted responded, "Happy Birthday!" I, then, told him that that was probably a good song choice. So we sang a couple rounds of, "Happy Birthday!" I thought for sure this would be the day! Then the nighttime contractions subsided come 7:30 a.m. "Did I take the day off for nothing?" Pretty much. No real big contractions throughout the day, but Josh and I did get to spend some quality time together while my mom took Kyler down to Longmont to hang out with his cousins. We went in to see Dr. Stoltz for my weekly checkup. Since I had been contracting, she wanted to check my cervix for dilation...she concluded that I was dilated to 4 cm. Shortly after 6:00, the contractions started up. By 8:00 they were strong enough and coming every 2-3 minutes that I convinced Josh that it was time to go to the hospital. Once we got there, I was brought into Labor and Delivery Triage. After being hooked up to all of the monitors, the triage doctor came in to check me. At that point I was 4 1/2 cm dilated. So she called the on-call doctor for my practice and he suggested that I walk around the hospital for about and hour to try and progress further. Uggg...this is NOT what I wanted to hear. However, it did help, after the hour I went back and the doctor said I had progressed to 5 cm. Good news! She was convinced that I would be checked into the hospital. WRONG! She called the on-call doctor and he suggested that I go home to labor where I'd be comfortable. In the meantime, I had to be tested for pre-eclampsia since I had a few readings of high blood pressure. So, even though I knew I was going home I had to tortuously wait for the blood test results to come back (another 45 minutes). Luckily, they had come back negative. Before I was officially on my way home the triage doctor made one last check (no progression - still at 5 cm), offered me a shot of morphine for the pain, and told me she'd probably see me back in a few hours.

Saturday, March 19 (early in the morning) - Frustrated, we got back home. I got as comfortable as I could in my own bed. I told Josh that we weren't going to waste our time going back unless: my water broke, I was vomiting, had bleeding or the baby was crowning. So I oohhed and ahhhed through every contraction. Then at about 5:30 everything came to a screeching halt! No contractions, not much pain, NOTHING! How can active labor just stop like that? Anyhow, since everything did just stop I was able to get some hard rest from 5:30-8:00. Kyler had a sleepover at Mema's house so we didn't have our usual 6:00 alarm clock wanting to "snuggle" with us. I was starving, so Josh and I treated ourselves to the Egg and I for a nice breakfast after a crazy night.

Sunday, March 20 - Nothing more than a few minor contractions during the day, and contractions throughout the nighttime but nothing really serious (every 5-10 minutes).

Monday, March 21 - Again, the contractions have subsided when I woke up this morning. I am tired of this unpredictability! So I sent Josh off to work and Kyler off to Debbie's. I am planning on hanging out with my mother for a few long walks and maybe a little shopping to see what happens! Hopefully the next post you will read will include baby pictures...but who really knows?

St. Paddy's Day Parade

As I have mentioned many times before, my family and I get together every year for the annual St. Paddy's Day Parade in Denver. My older brother, Brian, claims he is the perfecter/mayor of this big day. He and some of his friends get up bright and early and are knocking on the door of the Breckenridge Brewery (right on the parade route) at 6:00 a.m. For them I am thankful, because come parade time I have a nice warm place to sit and can order food and drinks at my convenience!
The only thing different this year is that my mom and John were able to join us, and I was unable to partake in the adult beverage consumption. We had a fabulous time and Kyler thoroughly enjoyed watching the parade while hanging out with his cousins!

Like Father, Like Son

Kyler got a hold of my Victoria's Secret advertisement......let's just say it kept him occupied for at least 10 straight minutes!

I stand corrected...

...by a 2 1/2 year-old!

This morning on the way to work, not only was it snowing and I was running late, but we seemed to be having to stop at every stoplight between our house and Deb's (there are many). I was frustrated so I murmured, "Son of a bitch." to myself. Kyler responded with, "What Mom?" I told him that I was sick of having to stop at every red light. Then he said, "Ok, don't say bitch again Mom!" Humbly, I told him he was right and chuckled underneath my breath. Thinking of this has kept me smiling all day! Thanks for the advice Kyler!

Who got scared of who?

Early this morning we were awoken by a crazy ruckus! It all stared with Lucy's vicious bark, one that I had never heard before...it was so deep and mean that I truly thought that there was something terribly wrong. Then about two seconds later I heard Kyler fall to the ground screaming/crying. Apparently, Kyler had woken up and was on his way to our room when he met Lucy in the hallway. Lucy couldn't hear Kyler get up and became scared of him. She bolted underneath our bed and I had to pick Kyler up and try to explain to him why Lucy was so mean to him. Lucy, then, came out from under the bed and jumped up onto the bed. With it being dark, all I noticed was a dark spot left from where Lucy had jumped onto the bed. The only thing I could think of was that Kyler had literally scared the shit out of her. "Oh great, there was now dog shit on our bed." I thought to myself. After turning on the light, it became apparent that it was not as I thought rather, it was blood. Lucy's paw was bleeding profusely. So I wiped it off and realized that one of her toenails was completely missing! With all of the commotion, it must have gotten caught on something and came off. We later found the missing toenail right outside out bedroom door. We bandaged it up and can only hope that it will grow back soon!

34 Weeks

I just paid my bi-weekly visit to Dr. Stoltz on Friday, and we have nothing but good news to report. I am holding quite steady at a 12 pound weight gain. The baby is head-down, which we weren't sure of last time. The heartbeat was hovering right at 133 bpm, once we were able to "trap" the baby in one place to hear the heartbeat long enough to get a reading. This baby surely likes to move around all of the time! My belly measured at 33 cm, which is just 1 cm shy of where I should be at this point. And other than the fatigue and hip aches, I am feeling pretty healthy. I am just getting really excited to meet this little one and not be pregnant any longer! Only 6 more weeks!

Ready for baby?

The other night we had some friends over for dinner. Lanie, Kyler's buddy who is 2 weeks younger than he is, accidentally left her baby doll. Upon finding it, Kyler said, "Ut oh, Lanie left her baby!" I told him that we can take care of it until we see them again. He agreed and ever since he has been taking very good care of it. He has swaddled her up in her blanket, said, "Mom, her's crying!", put her into the Bumbo and fed her soup, and has "snuggled" with her at night. So last night while I was putting away Kyler's laundry, I couldn't help but to snap this picture (which he may someday hate me for).I can only hope that he will be so kind to his younger sibling! I'm sure that he will be a terrific big brother!

Crazy Dreams

As with Kyler's pregnancy, this pregnancy has produced some pretty wild dreams! The other night I dreamt that I was training for a triathlon. I was racing against my students with a big pregnant belly and all. For some reason, I couldn't figure out why I was getting so winded! The baby was probably pushing on my diaphragm while I was sleeping to cause heavy breathing. Then, just last night, I dreamt that we went out of town with some friends (which we are actually planning on doing later this month). We were all enjoying adult beverages and having a grand ol' time! Too bad this won't be happening! I think I am subliminally ready to be finished with this pregnancy. I know what I will be doing once this baby is born...and it probably won't be training for a triathlon!