The [pre] birth story

If you're expecting your first baby, you might as well just set the date on your calendar now - your baby probably won't arrive until you're at the 41 week mark. (Not to say that some little ones don't come earlier, but you should prepare yourself for a late arrival, too.) Joe and I learned in our childbirth classes that the average first baby is delivered at 41 weeks and 1 day. For me, that would have been June 21st. Brenan was born June 22nd at 11:19am.

On June 1st, I remember saying to Joe, "Okay, we made it to June, I'm full-term, and Baby is healthy, so going into labor is fine with me any time now." Little did I know that weeks later I would still be pregnant.

We tried everything in the book to get labor to begin... so much so that I felt our efforts were worthy of a blog post on their own.

I did my best to put these in order of when we did (or started doing) them...
Walking
Sex
Relaxation
Breast pumping
Acupressure & massage
Visualization
Raspberry-leaf tea
Pineapple
Stripping the membranes
Castor oil
Jumping jacks

Not to be discouraging to any nearing-or-past-your-due-date-expecting-mothers out there, but none of these worked. I'm sure they all helped my body prepare little by little, but baby Brenan was pretty determined to stick it out until he was good n' ready to experience the world outside the womb.

Throughout my 3rd trimester I had frequent Braxton-Hicks contractions. In the last weeks before labor they were more intense, and fooled me into wishful "this is it" thoughts on more than one occasion. Contractions would be coming every 8-10 minutes for hours and then suddenly stop. Joe stayed home from work to support me though the stress of not knowing whether it was "real" or not, and the mild pain that accompanied my contractions.

After we got home from the OB on June 20 - 41 weeks

On Monday, June 20th, we had our final doctor's appointment with the OB. She did a ultrasound to check my fluid levels, which were at the lowest end of the "ok" spectrum, and to check the placenta, which was showing signs of aging and calcification. She also did a non-stress test to check how the baby was handling things. It turned out that he was doing just fine. She was surprised at how consistent his heart rate was, and was pleased to see it accelerating with movement and contractions (still just Braxton-Hicks). She stripped my membranes at that appointment, but agreed to wait for an induction until Thursday, June 23rd (a full 10 days after my due date) in respect for my wishes of avoiding a scheduled induction altogether.

My OB recommended trying castor oil mixed with orange juice when I got home to help labor begin. I was 3cm dilated and 40% effaced at my appointment, so my body was obviously close to going into labor on its own. We were hoping the castor oil would help push me over the edge. When I saw what it looked like mixed into (or rather, floating on top of) the orange juice, I wondered what the point was. Then I tried taking it by itself. Note: if you ever decide to take castor oil, mix it with orange juice. It may not help the texture, but you do NOT want to taste the castor oil by itself.

Contractions began within an hour or two, and were fairly intense. They came every 10 minutes, then every 9, then every 8... this lasted from noon to about 10pm. Then they stopped. Yet again, another exhausting and discouraging tease of labor.

Soon-to-be baby Brenan

The next morning I took another dose of castor oil in hopes that it would work even better this time... it did, but not on my uterus. This time I had no contractions, horrible gas pain, and diarrhea worse than I had when I was in India. I vowed never to take it again.

Tuesday evening (June 21st) I went to the bathroom and there was bright red blood on the paper when I wiped. I called the OB department at the hospital right away and they had me come in for observation. I was having contractions every 6-8 minutes, no more bleeding (they never really figured out what caused it, but they thought it was maybe related to having my membranes stripped the morning before), and the baby's heart rate was looking great. I was sent home 2 hours later, thankful that everything was okay.

I'll stop here, because the next part of the story is the part that many of you have been waiting for... my labor, and Brenan's arrival! (and it gets a post all to itself)

It's a boy!

Finally, our little BOY has arrived!

Brenan Matthew

born June 22, 2011 11:19am

9 lbs 6 oz, 21 inches

...birth story is soon-to-come!



Making progress (!)

I am 41 weeks pregnant today.

I never thought I would make it this far. If you had asked me a month ago if I thought it was possible that I would still be pregnant on June 20th I would probably have laughed.

Alas, here I sit, pregnant as can be.

The doctor's appointment was much more encouraging this week, though. My body is showing all the signs of impending labor, and the baby is doing well. They said I'll probably have this baby in the next day or two by the look of things!


Note: I don't have any pictures for you because our computer is on sick leave. The fan has stopped working completely! I'm using my very old college laptop to write this post - it only took about a half-hour to get the "new post" page pulled up on blogger...

Final countdown: 0 weeks to Baby

It's finally here: Baby's "due" date.

I have to clarify a little though... we've been publicly stating that the due date is June 16, which is the date we were given early on in pregnancy based of an ultrasound we had done while in Bulgaria. When we returned to the States the doctors agreed that June 13 was a more appropriate date, but we didn't want to add to this past weekend's wedding stresses by mentioning that the baby was not only due the same week as the wedding but almost the same day.

SO, surprise! the due date is actually TODAY, folks!

Due dates, however, don't really mean to much. They just help to give you a ballpark idea of when to expect your baby. They are sometimes, unfortunately, taken a little too seriously in the medical world and used as a reason to medically induce labor or even surgically remove baby from mom. Our sincere hope is that we don't have to deal with this issue, but if Baby doesn't come in the next week we likely will.

Joe and I had a discouraging visit to the doctors this morning. My OB said that my body really isn't showing signs of being ready for labor, and she started talking about induction. It hadn't occurred to me yet that after today my baby is "overdue." I guess I think of overdue as being after 41 weeks... not immediately after the due date. Anyway, I was devastated. I have learned so much in preparing for labor and delivery about the risks of induction that now I fear having to experience it.

Using the artificial hormone, Pitocin, to start, lengthen, speed up, and strengthen contractions can take your body past its natural limits. Labor goes beyond the natural levels of pain and the strength of the contractions can stress baby beyond what he/she is designed for. Mom often ends up with pain medications even when she hadn't originally planned on them and baby sometimes ends up being born by Cesarean due to fetal distress. In short... it's better to let your body do what its designed to do on its own and not interfere. Even if that means waiting a little longer for baby than your "due date" would suggest.

I'm trying to trust and surrender this worry. In some ways it still seems so unreal that this is all happening to me. I don't have a way to explain away the belly, but everything else seems like it's all a dream... maybe I'll just wake up and find out that I'm actually not having a baby. Joe and I were saying the other day it feels like we're waiting to win the lottery or something... like there's only a small chance that I'm actually ever going to go into labor and deliver this baby. Thank goodness that's not true!

So... we wait. Sometimes patiently, sometimes impatiently... but always hoping that today will be the day.

You might be about to have a baby if...

I've been trying to come up with a list of the signs of late pregnancy. It's one of those things, though, where you can think of a TON until you decide to write them down, and then you're stumped. Here's what I've come up with so far: 

You might be about to have a baby if...

Your belly gets wet every time you do the dishes

Someone has to help you out of bed in the morning

You can't fit in booth seating when you go out to eat

Only 2 items from your wardrobe still fit: pajama pants and oversized t-shirts

You're wishing for that peed-in-your-pants feeling (signaling that your water has broken)

You find it impossible to get something off the floor from a sitting position

You dream about labor, delivery, breastfeeding, and diapers

Also, your wedding rings don't fit. (For that matter, nothing fits.)

My engagement ring was due for inspection, so I got it out yesterday and tried to put it on, thinking I could just wear it a little snug for a few hours to get back and forth from the store. ...I didn't realize how much my fingers have swollen!

My rings on wedding day

My rings now

It's so sad! Although, it worked out okay... the clerk at the jewelry shop offered to send them out and have them cleaned more thoroughly. Since I'm not wearing them anyway, we decided now is the perfect time to go ahead and do just that. So now, when the swelling goes down postpartum and I can wear my rings again they'll be especially shiny!

Final countdown: 1 week to Baby

39 weeks

I have to admit, Joe and I were hoping Baby would arrive this past weekend. I particularly liked June 5 as a possible birthday. I don't really know why... although 6-5-11 would be easy to remember (since 6+5=11). But alas, we woke up this morning with bulging bottom lips, pouting that we had to start another day of waiting.

Cliche, I know... but I like it anyway.

It's not actually so much that we want the pregnancy to end (although I have to say the idea of laying on my stomach is glorious). It's more of a schedule issue. (Note: I think we should probably be concerned about wanting our baby to come because of what's on our calendar... but that's another concern altogether...)

Besides Baby, coming up in the next two week period: Joe's sister gets married, my parents stay with us for the wedding weekend, and staff training starts at camp (which Joe is in charge of). So, it seems to us that the best possible time for Baby to be born would be... well... now. I would love to not be 40 weeks pregnant in those wedding pictures.

I'm glad we don't have to wait forever. I think waiting could probably be listed as a form of torture... maybe even a cause of death in extreme cases. Joe and I hold our breaths with every cramp or twinge of pressure I feel. I think it's actually worse for Joe than it is for me. We're both just SO excited!

Oscar and I took this one just for you, Katie

Waiting on Baby

I have come to decide that being full term (or at least being aware of it) is both a blessing and a curse. On one hand, it's a huge relief to know that I don't have to worry about preterm labor anymore. On the other hand, it means I think about how close I am to having Baby in my arms (and not my belly) and whether I may or may not go into labor at a certain moment ALL THE TIME. In fact, it's hard to think about much else.

I can definitely tell a difference in my body, too. Up until a week or two ago I've felt what I would call "comfortably pregnant." Recently though, and especially since the baby has started to drop, I feel more like a cow-sized duck. (Cow because of size, duck because of the waddle.) I don't want to complain to you, though. I don't know anyone who enjoys listening to complaining.

Image source

I can't wait to finally meet my son or daughter face to face, but there are some things I will miss about being pregnant with Baby... the persistence of his/her hiccups, the squirming during car rides, the nudges in the middle of the night... I'll miss looking in the mirror and being reminded of the awesome work of creation going on inside of me. It is humbling to know that I've been entrusted with a life... a life that began so fragile and dependent there was no way it could continue without me.

As the time nears for Baby to begin life outside the womb, I'm realizing that I'm going to have to get to know him/her all over again. I have grown accustomed to each and every intricate movement, but I haven't yet felt the softness of Baby's skin or smelled that fresh baby scent. In the coming weeks I will have to learn Baby's hunger cues, soothe him/her to sleep, and ease him/her into the harshness of the world outside of my womb.


The day is drawing ever-closer when I will hear that wonderful first cry and see my baby's face for the first time... oh what a glorious day that will be.

Final countdown: 3 weeks to Baby

Thirty-seven weeks.

Sometimes I think I'm still sort of in denial about being pregnant. It still hits me every once and a while that Whoa... this is really happening! Of course, the symptoms are obviously kind of hard to ignore at this point... not being able to roll over in bed without great effort, significant fatigue, swelling... not to mention a belly the size of a beach ball that moves on its own.

Joe and I went to the doctor on Friday. Everything is right on track for this point of pregnancy! He said the magic words, too - "If you go into labor now, we're not stopping you." That's right - I'm finally full term.

I look back on all the transitions that we've made during the course of this pregnancy and think How in the world did we do that? We moved from our host family's home in Bulgaria to our own house in a mountainside village, then we moved from there to stay with our friends for a couple days before traveling back to the States where we stayed with my parents in Virginia for three weeks. Then we moved to Ohio and unpacked the boxes that have been in storage for almost a year now to set up our apartment.

Baby is actually quite well-traveled... During this pregnancy I visited Austria, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, and Greece. I have flown through London, Vienna, Sofia, and Washington, D.C. and driven what seems like everywhere else in between.

With all of the changes we've made in the past few months it's been hard to really focus on the fact that we're having a baby. It's just been since we've gotten to Ohio that we've really been able to make the preparations that we've been wanting to make... And only in this past week that we've finally come to the point where we feel like we have a place for our new arrival (more on that later!).

Now we just have to wait for when Baby decides he/she is ready, too!

Wrong day, lady.

Joe and I went to my 36 week check up today at the doctor's office - the appointment was at 10:15. We arrived at 10 o'clock sharp. The doctor was, for whatever reason, running behind, so we ended up waiting.
And waiting.
And waiting...

We were finally called back for the appointment around 11:40.

Diesal getting some love before going on a walk last week.

Now, if you have ever been pregnant before or are currently, you'll understand what I mean when I say I HAD TO PEE. Not to mention I was uncomfortable from sitting so long in the waiting room. (I actually stood up around 11:20, but by that time my bladder was so full I was afraid if I moved around too much bad things would happen to the waiting room carpet...) Once we got back to the room (well, bathroom first, then exam room) things went pretty quickly. Everything checked out okay, and I was on my way out the door.

...Except that the receptionist had gone missing. So then I stood at the check out counter for another 5 or 10 minutes with my growling tummy waiting for her to return. By the time she did, it was about noon. We're down to once a week appointments now, so we got our next one on the calendar and headed to the lab to get my blood drawn.

The hospital here, though there are some things I love about it, is really not that keen when it comes to prompt service. They have to re-register you every time you go - re-enter your information, re-copy your insurance card, re-everything. It took them almost a half-hour to call us back to get registered for my ONE lab order.

Trust me, if anyone understands how stretched my belly is, it's me.

I could have hugged the lab tech when I saw her standing at the door waiting for me as I exited the registrar's office. She took me straight back, drew the lab, and sent me on my way. Finally. By this point, I'm sure you can imagine we were quite tired of waiting and ready to get the rest of our errands run so we could get on with the day.

Joe and I ate at a local soup and salad place for lunch, stopped by the bank, and stopped by the local grocer to pick up a few of their weekly sale items that we'd seen advertized. There was a sample station at the end of one the isles and a woman handing out samples. I think it was for pasta salad. She asked if we wanted any as we were passing; we smiled and said no thank you. Then, after we had already walked far enough past her to have our backs to her she yells out, "You look like you're about ready to pop any day now!"

Wrong day, lady.

It's good for her sake we were in a public place where I didn't want to call any more attention to myself than my protruding belly already does. Otherwise, I think I might have responded a little less politely than the smile and nod I gave as we quickened our pace and went down the closest isle.

Jen's-eye view

What's funny is I had to bend over a little to be able to get my toes to show in the picture. Truthfully, when I look straight down I can't see anything but belly!

Joe's Pic[k]: Chapstick

Christmas 2009

Santa loves to fill our family's stockings with fun little knick-knacks every Christmas. He usually includes chapstick - we wouldn't want to have chapped lips over the holidays!

I was in Babies-R-Us the other day with Joe and this woman came up to me and was asking about my pregnancy and where we plan to deliver. She gave us our first bit of unsolicited advice - be sure Joe packs chapstick for me to use while I'm in labor at the hospital.

It's funny how pregnancy is outside of the realm of "not your business." Anyone and everyone seems to feel the need to say something about my protruding belly, labor & delivery, feeding, diapering, and how to raise my child.

One of my most recent favorites? A shop clerk: "So you're about to pop, huh?"

Movin' slow

I got a number of things done Friday, including (but not limited to):

Having an early lunch out with a friend
Researching, choosing, and ordering laundry detergent for our cloth diapers (more to come on that in a later post)
Buying reusable diaper pail liners
Getting an Amazon rewards card (should have done that a LONG time ago... I love Amazon!)
Working on my list of addresses for baby shower invites
Reading some of Babies First Year
Exchanging nursing tank tops at Target for the right size
Reading up on all my favorite mom blogs

Tomorrow Joe and I embark on the mission of repacking our bags for the final stretch of our journey. (We've actually already started so it shouldn't be too bad.) We'll be leaving Virginia Wednesday morning, making an overnight stop in Pennsylvania for a few closing meetings from our assignment in Bulgaria, and arriving in Ohio on Thursday night.

We'll have Diesal with us, who doesn't really like the car all that much, and, of course, pregnant me, who needs to stop and get out of the car to walk every hour. It should be an interesting (and slow) trip.

Cottage cheese

Joe thinks cottage cheese is disgusting. I'm pretty sure it's more of a texture issue than anything else. Last night, though, he made sure to point out that he had a serving on his plate.

Link to picture source

Throughout my pregnancy, most likely because it wasn't available in Bulgaria, I have craved cottage cheese. I'm not talking about the I-feel-like-I'm-going-to-die-if-I-don't-get-some kind of craving, just the I'd-really-love-to-have-some kind. So the first week we were back, Joe and I headed out to Kroger. You know what we got? Ice cream and cottage cheese. I'd say that beats pickles any day.

No worries... I didn't eat them together. However, I did find out that there are many, many choices when it comes to buying cottage cheese. Not only do you have differences in brand, but you've got 4% milkfat minimum, 2% milkfat, and fat free. On top of that you have large curd vs. small curd. And then you can get the cottage cheese singles packs that come with a fruit mix of some kind that you mix in. In case you're wondering, I recommend the Kroger-brand, 4% milkfat minimum, small curd cottage cheese. (Now that's a mouthful!)

My grandparents were here after church yesterday for an Easter lunch. We had all the fixin's... ham, corn, pineapple, four bean salad, crescent rolls, and (save the best for last!) chocolate-covered strawberries. Now, if you know my family, you know that one of our favorite meals is ham rolls made with King's Hawaiian bread rolls. We got to talking about them and that, of course, got my pregnancy tummy growling for some ham rolls, cottage cheese, and salad...

And then Dad and Joe volunteered to go to the store to get some! Now, they are obviously my two favorite men in the world, but don't go thinking their motivations were completely selfless... they did come back with a Redbox movie along with the groceries after all!

As for Joe's opinion of cottage cheese... he ate it, but I'm not sure he'll be craving it anytime soon.

A baby means...

Thank you to the women from my parents' church who put together a beautiful baby shower for Joe and I this week. It was so meaningful!

With Meemaw-to-be-(of grandbaby #3!)

One of my favorite cards from the shower:

A baby means...
room arranging,
diaper changing,
late-night feeding,
story reading.

A baby means...
mess ignoring,
cereal pouring,
singing, rocking,
cabinet locking,
long walk taking,
early waking,
grins and coos,
pinks and blues.

And this is just a start -
most of all, a baby means a love that fills your heart!

Restless legs

Link to picture source

Don't get me wrong... I LOVE feeling my baby move. Not only is it a reminder of the precious little life inside me, but it also tells me my baby is safe and healthy. That being said... at some point having someone in your stomach who extends his/her leg until it feels like it's just going to pop right out can start to make you feel a little nauseous.

Joe finds it entertaining to watch my belly writhe about when Baby's awake. I find it... well... stretching. Everyday I look in the mirror and think, Is it really possible that my skin could stretch to accommodate an even BIGGER belly? I have mentioned this to other women, of course, and the response I always get is an emphatic, "Oh, yes... you can get MUCH bigger!"

Well... here's to growing another few inches around the mid-section!