Back from the hospital...

But no baby yet! I went to my midwife appointment on Friday morning at 11:00 and my BP was absolutely through the roof...146/102 (taken three times, all about the same). Leslie wanted to induce immediately since we had been seeing this trend over the last few weeks, and she transferred my care to a doctor in the practice. I went home, got our bags, and headed back to L&D. Checked in at 2:00, got a saline lock (worst experience EVER--it's still sore!), got hooked up to the monitors, and watched the nurses cart in all the induction stuff (the plan was to use a Foley catheter). The monitored me for about 45 minutes, and my BP just kept getting lower, and lower, and lower...by the end, it was almost normal! In addition, I was having contractions about every 5 minutes, 60 seconds long.

The doctor came in, and said she had reviewed my chart. She didn't want to induce because the likelihood of a cesarean was so high and because my BP had stabilized. She decided to keep me in the hospital on bedrest, though, and redid a 24-hour urine collection and labs. Everything came back relatively normal (the protein in my urine was elevated, but not above the "magic number" of 300), so she discharged me this morning. It was the most boring 3 days of my life! I am on modified bed rest now, so I have a feeling the next week or two is going to just creep by. She encouraged us to get labor moving by whatever means possible--as if we hadn't been doing that already!

Anyway, my care was transferred BACK to the midwives, and I have an appointment on Tuesday morning. I have to be honest--I really liked the doctor that worked with me, and I'm now a little skeptical of my primary midwife. I understand that my BP WAS dangerously high, and I think she was right to want to induce. However, she wanted to induce using cytotec! She actually told me to tell the doctor to use cytotec, but I was thrilled that she wanted to use the Foley catheter instead. The rest of my appointments are scheduled with the other midwife in the practice, who I think I like better anyway. It's weird how my opinion has totally shifted over the past few days. I thought I liked Leslie way better, but now I'm on the Nicole bandwagon!

I'm still having regular contractions, but they don't hurt at all. I can just feel a little cramp and then rising in my uterus. Last time they checked, they were about 8 minutes apart, 60-90 seconds long. I guess I'll know when it's the "real thing"--I hope that happens soon!

Nope, nothin' yet. I keep getting contractions in the evening, but they fizzle out by morning. I'm wondering what the little counter to the left will say once I surpass my due date...hmm...-1 days left?

In other news, I am officially addicted to baby carriers. I started out my collection with a few cheap things I picked up second hand, and now my "nice" carriers outnumber my "cheap" carriers. I have a Moby-style wrap (thanks to Rebecca and Michael!), a ring sling that I bought second-hand from Once Upon a Child, a NICE Kozy Carrier Mei Tai, a Beco Butterfly (most practical, especially for daddy), and a Storch Leo wrap (undoubtedly the "nicest"). I think it's kind of become like some women with shoes or handbags--this is my newest shopping addiction! I'll have to post pictures of me and Ella using each one after she's born :-) Tory, I've been trying to convince Chris that I need a "formal" dupioni silk ring sling for your wedding, but he's not buyin' it (literally and figuratively)!!!

Nothing yet

Still nothing but cramps! Still keeping our fingers crossed!

Today's Acupuncture

Well, I had my acupuncture treatment today, but I don't think I'm in labor yet. I had a couple of strong contractions while I was on the table and a couple more during dinner, and then they tapered off for a while. :-( As I'm typing this, though, I feel really crampy, and I feel lots of pressure down there. I'm going to try to get some sleep, and hopefully Ella wakes me up at about 6am! :-)

Maternity Photos!

Chris finally took maternity pictures for me! I kind of wanted to use a professional photographer (mostly for the experience), but I'm glad Chris did it instead--take a look!

Is she coming soon?

Since the midwife suggested we try to get Ella out as soon as possible, I scheduled an acupuncture "induction" for next Wednesday, the 15th. Remee, the acupuncturist, told me I needed to bring someone with me to drive, "just in case"!!! Now, I'm not getting my hopes up that it will even work the first time--acupuncture is most effective when used within one week of the due date--but her insistence that I bring someone along to drive has made me quite anxious! I've been reading studies on acupuncture induction, and it really is quite effective. Cross your fingers that it works and we're holding a little one before our next midwife appointment (next Friday, the 17th)!

So....very...tired...

Why, oh why, am I so tired? I've been sleeping rather well lately, but my day goes something like this: wake up, check my discussion boards online, eat breakfast, feel extremely sleepy, get unmotivated to do anything, spend the entire day watching TV or online, still sleepy at bedtime even though I've done nothing...repeat!

I have this lovely schedule that I made for cleaning the house, but I'm already behind this week. I need to get off my butt and do something!

We got the "all clear"

I realize that most of you weren't even aware we were having problems (I didn't want to worry everyone), but I wanted to let you know that we're okay! I had been dealing with high blood pressure for a couple of weeks, and then last week there was a small amount of protein in my urine and I had gained 4 pounds in a week. The worst case scenario was preeclampsia, a very serious problem that can only be resolved by delivering the baby as quickly as possible. The midwife had me do blood tests and collect my urine for 24 hours (ew!) to make sure it wasn't preeclampsia. I, of course, freaked out when induction became a possibility and bawled in her office. I wouldn't mind meeting Ella early, but my care would be transferred to one of the doctors if I were induced! I really want to deliver with the midwives--I've been looking forward to the experience for almost 9 months. Anyway, we had our appointment today, and everything was fine! There was an acceptable amount of protein in my urine, and the blood work was all normal. My blood pressure is still high, though, so she really wants me to go into spontaneous labor as soon as possible. She suggested some herbs and supplements (evening primrose oil and red raspberry leaf tea) along with lots of sex and acupuncture. Hopefully we'll be meeting our little girl a little earlier than her due date!

Funny story...

My friend, Michele, told me I should write the story of yesterday's adventure in my blog, so here goes...

Yesterday started out really relaxing--I got my hair cut first thing in the morning, and then I went grocery shopping at Whole Foods. I was tired after walking around the store, but nothing severe. I went home, put away the groceries, and lay on the couch for about an hour before leaving for our childbirth class. Chris and I went to the class, which lasted about 2 hours, and then decided to stop by Target to pick up an exercise ball for use during labor. We also ended up getting loads of snacks to pack in the hospital bag, but that's completely beside the point :-) After Target, we were both STARVING, so we decided to eat at this Thai joint in the West End. It was good, and as we left I noticed a Hancock Fabric store in the same shopping center. This was truly the beginning of the end!

I thought we could stop for just a minute to look at fabric, but no...I ended up walking all around the store full of excitement and ended up completely wearing myself out! I had to head on out to the truck while Chris checked out (poor Chris, having to check out with an arm full of fabric and thread). I relaxed for a while and then realized that I REALLY had to pee (surprise, surprise). I didn't want to walk ALL the way back into Hancock, so I waited for Chris and decided I would go at Home Depot when we stopped. We drove about 10 minutes to Home Depot (torture), and because we had the truck, had to park FAR away. As an added bonus, the bathroom at Home Depot is all the way at the back of the store. Not a big deal for those of you who are not 8 1/2 months pregnant, but a HUGE deal for me! I walked as quickly as I could to the restroom, did what I needed to do, and started walking back out to the front of the store. I started getting those darn pinching sensations in my crotch, which seriously stop me in my tracks. I had to stop every couple of seconds, pretend to look at something, and then walk a few more steps. The real excitement began when I got out to the parking lot!

Again, I had to stop every few seconds, but there was no merchandise to pretend to study. There was another couple getting into their car, and they just kept staring at me...I know they were thinking, "Oh, jeez! This lady's going to give birth in the parking lot!" I finally got to the truck, and I climbed inside (literally, I have to CLIMB into the truck). I left the door open for circulation (since the windows don't open), reclined the seat ALL the way back, and propped my feet up on the dashboard. Of course, my legs are spread apart to make room for my massive belly, so I now realize it probably looked to passers-by that I was about to give birth. Chris started walking back the truck after making his purchases, saw me there, and began RUNNING at full speed! He got there and just kept asking over and over again if I was okay...even HE thought I was about to push Ella out!

We finally came home and I crashed into the bed and had the best sleep ever. It was the first day I have ever felt "disabled" as a pregnant woman, and I realized that I usually forget that pregnant women are quite a bit more restricted than those who are not...and I now wish that every parking lot had "Expectant Mother" spaces!

Ella is full term today!

Today marks 37 weeks of pregnancy! Ella could come today and would be *perfectly* healthy! :-) In celebration, Michael and Rebecca came to visit, and Rebecca did a belly cast:

Applying many, many strips of plaster


Rebecca got a little too touchy

Beckett modeling the finished product

We will sand it and paint it later (once it is completely dry)...I think it's so cool! Chris thought it was a little weird, and I think he was relieved that Rebecca wanted to do it with me. She was really perfectionist about the whole process, and it turned out beautifully!

At my last appointment, Leslie (the midwife) checked my cervix. I am 1 cm. dilated and 50% effaced! I know it doesn't mean that labor is imminent or anything, but it's nice to know that my body is doing something to prepare for the birth. At least I know there's a point to all the painful pinches in my crotch region--ouch!

Hopefully Ella will stay put for at least another week so that we can attend the baby shower. Hope to see you all there!

And here's one more picture of Beckett because he's so freakin' cute: