Maternity Pics

All of our maternity pics are now up at:
http://www.ryancookphotography.com/index2.php?v=v1

To view album, go to "clients" at the bottom of the page. The password is our cats name. (If you don't remember her name, leave a comment for me or email me directly and I'll email it to you.)

I Can See the Future!!!

Well, so they think!!! With the medication being done and early contractions, everyone is predicting an early arrival for Mr. Elijah. I thought it would be fun to put their predictions down and see who's closest. Here's they are:

Todd's Prediction
Arrival date: April 1
Weight: 6 lbs, 3 oz.
Length: 22 in.
Other: That he's really a girl................ April fools!!!!!!!!!!!
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My Mom's Prediction
Arrival Date: April 9 ( but maybe between April 1 and April 9)
Weight: 6 lbs, 3 oz
Length: 20 in.
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My Dad's Prediction
Arrival Date: April 15
Weight: 6 lbs, 8 oz.
Length: ???
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Todd's Mom's Prediction
Arrival Date: April 7
Weight: 6 lbs, 1 oz
Length: 21 in.
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My Prediction
Arrival Date: April 8 ( but no later than April 13)
Weight: 6 lbs, 8 oz.
Length: 22 in. (LOL, I don't know much about lengths, but I'm guessing he's taller/ longer than average)
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Kristy's Prediction

Arrival Date: April 5

Weight: 6 lbs, 4 oz

Other: Drug free!!!

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Stephanie's Prediction

Arrival Date: April 5

Weight: 6lbs, 5 oz.

Length: 20 in.

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Jeff's Prediction

Arrival Date: April 6

Weight: 6lbs, 4oz.

Length: 19 in.

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Mom's Co-Worker:

Arrival Date: April 6

Weight: 6lbs, 8 oz

Other:Begin labor at night and deliver in the morning

Other: No hair!!!

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If anyone else wants to offer a guess, feel free to let me know and I'll be happy to post it!

It's a Bitter Sweet Day in Pregnancyland.

Tomorrow is officially my 36th week!! I am SO happy with knowing that the little man will be here in just a few weeks. The bittersweet part is that I'm off my medication which is great because.... well......... I'm off of it, but the down side is that I'm so nervous that the contractions will come back stronger and labor is closer than we'd want. If I'm admitted after this point, there is no more stopping them. We are very anxious to meet him, but want him to keep on baking for at least another week and be healthy enough to come home and not spend time in the NICU.

The time has flown and up to this point , I have enjoyed it. I can honestly say it was a pretty easy pregnancy (aside from dealing with the stress of being on the modified bed rest). I didn't have many of the usual issues that so many complain about. I had no morning sickness, no major mood swings (Todd says because I have them naturally, LOL), not a day of spotting, no insomnia, no kicks to the ribs (knock on wood), absolutely no heartburn, and no UTI, bladder infections, etc.

What did I have? Other than the preterm labor, let's see...... I had the leg cramps at night, "bowel issues" and headaches in the beginning, fatigue in the first tri, and sciatia this trimester. That's it. Pregnancy really wasn't what I thought it would be, but that's a good thing. I was told to expect to have pains from head to toe, constantly be nauseated and have heartburn, and that I'd have plenty of sleepless nights (because of all of the body aches, tossing a turning, and just not being able to get comfortable). Both Todd and I agree that I've been blessed with an easy pregnancy. Maybe they'll get me next time around.

My goal and wish now is that my labor and delivery will go "relatively" smooth. I'm not expecting it to be easy by any means. I just want to be able to get through with no epidural and other meds. We shall see!!!!!

A Newborns Conversation with God

I found this and just had to share. It brought tears to my eyes after reading it :(

A Newborns Conversation with God

A baby asked God, "They tell me you are sending me to earth tomorrow, but how am I going to live there being so small and helpless?"

God said, "Your angel will be waiting for you and will take care of you."

The child further inquired, "But tell me, here in heaven I don't have to do anything but sing and smile to be happy."

God said, "Your angel will sing for you and will also smile for you. And you will feel your angel's love and be very happy."

Again the child asked, "And how am I going to be able to understand when people talk to me if I don't know the language?"

God said, "Your angel will tell you the most beautiful and sweet words you will ever hear, and with much patience and care, your angel will teach you how to speak."

And what am I going to do when I want to talk to you?" God said, "Your angel will place your hands together and will teach you how to pray." Who will protect me?"

God said, "Your angel will defend you even if it means risking its life."But I will always be sad because I will not see you anymore." God said, "Your angel will always talk to you about Me and will teach you the way to come back to Me, even though I will always be next to you."

At that moment there was much peace in Heaven, but voices from Earth could be heard and the child hurriedly asked, "God, if I am to leave now, please tell me my angel's name.

"God said, "You will simply call her, "Mom."

Another Dr Appt.... Another Hospital Visit :(

Bad news first. I ended up going back to the hospital today right after my appt, but to be honest, I don't really feel it was even needed. I had a non- stress test done at the dr's office and the little man just wasn't active enough for them. Can you believe that?????The same little man that always has my belly flipping and flopping!!! They sent me over to be monitored and I was released about 30 minutes later. I personally thought it was a waste, esp. knowing how active he is regularly; they just caught him during a nap (but of course, they weren't happy with that). While there, I also had the usual cervix check and there was no change so he's hanging in there.

Now for all the good news, no cervical change so the little man is going to be hanging around for at least a little longer. While having the non stress test, I did have contractions, but at this point, they are sorta expected and no big deal. I had an ultrasound and he's looking really good. He's measuring exactly on time at 35 weeks, is almost 6 lbs, and in the 65th percentile!!! With him being so big now, all the cute little pics are over :( He's REALLY low, in vertex position (yah!!) and the tech said that as low as he is, there is very little chance in him moving away from being head down so that was great news. I'm still set to be get off my medicaton on Sunday and I begin having my weekly appts next week as well. According to the Dr's timeline, I'll be 36 weeks then (my timeline is 4 days ahead of theirs) and they want to start seeing somekind of progress. With me being off the medication, I'm sure it'll happen pretty fast, but my goal is to make it to at LEAST 38 weeks (their time), putting him at making his appearance right around Easter. My Dr says that there is really no way to tell how I'm going to react to being med- free and that some women have went into labor the day after being off, while others go for weeks and beyond their due date and have to be induced (both of which I fear and don't want).

Appt. Stats:

Mommy's weight: 145 lbs Total weight gain to date: 29 lbs.

Baby's heart rate: 120 (per doppler), 135 (per ultrasound)

Baby's position: Still vertex!! WAY low!!

Baby's approx weight: 5 lbs, 11 oz.

Maternity Pics!!

Here are a few of the pics from the maternity shoot. Although I definitely felt the effects of being up and about for the 2 hours it took, I'm very happy with how they came out so far. The photographer, Ryan Cook, hasn't finished them all yet,but he has OK'ed me to post a sneak peak so here they are!! There are also a few more on his blog at : http://photocook.blogspot.com/.

The first one ISN'T one of the professional ones; just one of me minutes before the shoot. I was SO excited!!!


8 1/2 months along, 27.5 lbs heavier and lovin' every minute (and lb) :)




One of our favorites!!




Should've had my jersey and hat on too :(



I love what he did with this one !!!




I was a little iffy about using this outfit because it was so bright, but now I'm SO glad I did!

What an Amazingly Busy (and Exciting ) Week!!

What a week!!! First, we went to our 33/34 week appt and the Dr reviewed my records and said that according to my last ultrasound, my fluid levels may have been a bit low!! Why wasn't I told then???? She measured me, and sure enough, I was measuring behind so she ordered another ultrasound to check fluid levels. Unfortunately, it was near closing time and the tech was busy with others so I had to go back the next day. We went in the following week and wooo hoooo! My levels were at a 11 (up from 10 last time) and I was told that it was on the low side of a safe range, but not too low and need to worry. (14 is considered average and 8 is considered low). So, all in all, I need to increase water intake to be sure it's at least maintained to be on the safe side. The tech didn't spend any time looking at the little man, but of course, he chose to flash us once again anyway!!!!





After the appt, we met and had lunch with a possible doula. She was such a nice lady and seemed to truly love what she does. She reviewed our birth plan and she shared stories of births she's assisted in. She offered to take photos at every stage (beginning with leaving the house for the hospital), will provide us a copy of the birth story she'll write, and even offered to come over and help out when she found out that I was on bed rest. After meeting her, I knew immediately that I wanted to hire her!! She is quite knowledgable of lots of non- med alternatives and just seems to be a compassionate person. I am really WANTING to go the non- medicated natural route and hope that in the end, it works out and I can deal with it. I hear all kinds of stories of women going in with that thought in mind, but when all is over, the epidural and other medication won. I'm praying that I can make it through. I'm not saying that it's wrong not to go that way, but I personally want to go without meds (or at least as long as I can). After all, before all the advancement in medicine, women did it for YEARS without!!!



Then, to top off the week, we had our maternity photo shoot at the house. It was SOOOO much fun and the photographer, Ryan Cook, was amazing!!! He was very easy going, patient, and had lots of good ideas. We were even able to get a few with Snowball and Buddy! Although I felt HUGE in some of the shots, I can't wait to see how they came out. He showed me one pic (because of the awkward position it was taken in), and it was very cute! I'd definitely recommend him to anyone needing a photographer!!! The shoot took 2 hours and when it was all over and done, I felt every minute of it!! That evening, my back was killing me and my sciatic nerve was even worse; I could barely walk!!!! And the next morning wasn't much better!!! Despite being up and about for that long of a period, my contractions didn't pick up at all and back pain was the only thing I had to deal with :)

Mommy, Make Them Go Away!! (Elijah's Rant)

Remember when I said that Elijah seems to get irritated at times when he gets the hiccups? Well, I was actually able to record him during one of his "fits" after a round of them this morning (at 33 weeks, 2 days). You can barely see my belly jumping ( maybe 2x from the very beginning)with the hiccups, but you can't miss his aggitation!!! He get's bothered once at the beginning, but really has a major fit right at the end.

He's up to having them (the hiccups) as many as 4 times a day now, so I can only imagine how annoying they are. Poor little man!

SURPRISE!!!

Todd took me out to what he said was for a special lunch Saturday and it turned out to be so much more!! He had me close my eyes as he walked me into the restaurant and when I opened them, Todd's family and a couple of friends were all there for a surprise baby shower!!! It was so thoughtful that everyone took the time to come out to celebrate the coming of Elijah! I am so thankful that so many people care for us and are so welcoming of our little man.

Stephanie and Amber:

Thanks so much for all the hard work, organizing, and all of the time you spent planning this. Everything turned out great and I cannot express how thankful I am. The cake was yummy, flowers were beautiful, and the games were a lot of fun (esp. seeing that some thought my belly was as big as I was almost tall, LOL).

Robyn and Jackie:

The diaper cake was too cute, not to mention, a huge help for us. I can only imagine how time consuming it must have been. Thanks so much for all that you put into creating it! It was beautiful!!

Everyone:
I really appreciate you all traveling and coming out and making the shower so enjoyable. I have that I wasn't able to get up and chat with you all and I'm sorry that some of you that had planned on coming couldn't make it. We are equally grateful for you taking the time to send your gifts. With all of your great presents, Elijah is pretty much set for making his debut! We are all very thankful and blessed to have you ALL in our lives. The personalized and homeade items are priceless!

When we got home, it seemed like part 2 of the shower! Todd and I went through all the gifts again and I wish I would have taken pics of Todd. He was as excited as I was!!!! In addition to all of that, we had more stuff waiting for us on the table that my parents and Ms Jo dropped off. It was like Christmas!!!

Thank you ALL for EVERYTHING!!!!

Here are a few pics that I took when we got home (Actual shower pics coming soon).

The beautiful diaper cake

All of the little man's gifts. I have a lot more organizing to do now!

Same pic, but with the balloons I forgot to include in the first.