Addie's room..It's almost done!

Here are the latest pictures of Addie's room. The only thing we have left to do is put up her curtains and little decorations on one wall. Other than that, it's done!! It was really hard to try to get good pictures, as the room is kinda awkward...

Pics from yesterday's doctor visit

Here is the ultrasound picture from yesterday...Not a lot to see, though you can see her HUGE cheeks!! Kristen took the other pictures. One was in the car, the other was sitting on the table in the doctor's office. I couldn't believe she pulled out the camera!

I hate contractions!!!

I'm 37 weeks and am officially miserable! These contractions get really strong for about an hour, then finally slack off again. I don't want to be one of these people that keep going to the hospital for "false alarms", so I'm trying to just grin and bear it all. Yesterday, I did some research on how to induce naturally. Here are some of the basic conclusions: lots of walking, check; have sex, check; drink lots of water, check; eat fresh pineapple, check; drink castor oil--no thanks! So, I did all of that and still nothing! But, after dinner, my contractions got really strong, which scared me. I started to cry, which didn't help the situation any! They are very strong, but I can't get them to be 3-5 minutes apart. It's just one long huge pain! Anyways, after an hour, they calmed down again!! GRRRR!!
I had a doctor's appointment today where he stretched my cervix. I am dilated to 3 cm, and he said he could stretch it more than 3, so that's good. Other than that, not much has changed. I'm still having a BIG baby. Today, according to the ultrasound, she was 7 lbs, 10 oz!! I asked Dr. Baker when he could induce me and he said not until 39 weeks!! (This is the week of June 7th!) I'm going to be as big as a house! (I already feel that I am!) None of my clothes are fitting anymore and I weighed 142 lbs at the doctor's office today!! I started off at 113, which was already heavy for me because of all of the fertility drugs.
Anyways, I'm very ready to have this baby!! If I wasn't having the contractions, I wouldn't be this miserable!! Sooo...everyone needs to pray that I have this baby SOON!!! Or, if you have any other strategies as to how to get her out, let me know!!
The pictures from the ultrasound weren't very good today. She still has HUGE cheeks!! That's about all that you can see in the pictures. They weren't the 3D ones...
It's funny...we prayed so long to keep her in, now I need prayers to get her out!! I'm just so tired of hearing "the longer she's in you, the healthier she gets!" or "enjoy the peace and quiet now, you won't have it for long!" I know everyone is trying to be helpful, but it gets really old!
Oh, the other thing that all people need to take note of......Don't tell a pregnant woman, or a brand new mom that her baby isn't very cute, or is ugly!!! Pregnant women are already sensitive enough, that doesn't help the situation!! I know the 3D pictures weren't exactly beautiful, but it still is very hurtful to hear those words. So, a word to the wise....keep your opinions to yourself!!
Okay, enough of being on my soapbox for the day! Hope everyone is doing well!! I'll keep everyone updated! :)

New pics of me

Many people always tell me that I need to get someone else to take the pictures of me and my growing belly. So, mom took a few of me before we went to the doctor's office yesterday. No, I don't have any makeup on. Last week when I put makeup on, I had to spend the night in the hospital. I didn't want to jinx myself when I went to the doctor this time!!

Woohoo!!

Well, we got our a/c fixed yesterday morning, so I'm enjoying sitting in the cool air.

More importantly though, I had my weekly doctor visit yesterday. My mom took me. Dr. Baker found that I am 2.5cm dilated and about 70% effaced. He decided that he is going to put me on the NST monitor (the contraction monitor) and do a BPP (ultrasound) weekly from now on. Of course, I wasn't on the books for these extra two things, so our appointment lasted from 2:30 until 6:05pm!!

Anyway, they saw that I am still contracting regularly, which is to be expected. The ultrasound looked really good. I got the really sweet ultrasound tech who always sneaks in some 4D pictures. So, mom and I got a good look at Addison. Boy, has she changed in a week!! She has HUGE cheeks!! She looks like such a chunker!! I've added quite a few pictures on here. While we were doing the 4D pictures, Addie must have been upset with us!! She literally was pouting!! You can see it in her face in one of the pictures! She was very unhappy!!! HAHA. Plus, I think she's pretty squished!!

Well, we saw Dr. Baker again after the ultrasound and he said that everything looks good. He has put me on "house rest" through Thursday, meaning I can't leave the house, but can get up a little more. I can stand for a maximum of 20 minutes at a time. As of Friday, I'll officially be off of bedrest!!! WOOOHOOO!!! I'm so excited!! I have a feeling that I may "overdo" it, as I want to get some stuf done around here. Maybe she'll be born this weekend!?!?! Everyone keep your fingers crossed!! Dr. Baker is on call this weekend, but is off on Monday. So...Addison needs to figure it all out before Monday! HA!

When it rains, it pours!!

Paul and I were finally enjoying being home from the hospital when Friday night came. My dad and Teresa came over to bring us dinner. Everything was going great.
When Paul got home, he thought it was really hot in the house. Keep in mind, I didn't notice this because I'm hot all day long! Anyways, our air conditioner was going out!! Of course, it was Friday night and we doubted anyone would come out to help us on the weekends. We have a home warranty, so we have to go through them, not just find a technician on our own. Well, Paul called it in as soon as he got home. I really wanted to head over to my mom's house (in the A/C), so that the heat wouldn't put me into labor. Paul felt that we could tough it out for the night, as he turned on some fans, moved our bed into the living room, and opened the windows. I was hot at first, but have to admit that I actually got cold in the middle of the night. Well, the next morning, we got a confirmation email. Paul called and no one would be able to be out before Monday, since it was the weekend. SOOOOO....I got on the phone and told them I really didn't want to go into labor because I got too hot. They graciously found a contractor that would come out on a Saturday. Around 2:00, the technician finally came out to see that our compressor was out. Again, because it's the weekend, they can't order the parts. So, we headed on over to mom's.
It's Sunday evening and here we sit at mom's house. My contractions are still happening and really get worse at night. Last night was really rough. I thought that by morning, we'd be at the hospital....no such luck. Hopefully we hear something soon about our A/C. Until then, we'll be at mom's in the cool air. We are very lucky that mom lives so close to us (and to the hospital, just in case something happens!)

35 weeks pictures

Here are my latest pictures of me and my huge belly. I took these the morning that I ended up going to the hospital! Sorry they are kinda dark..I'm not sure why. Also, the black thing hanging out of my pocket was my pump that was like an IV into my leg. I'm so glad to have that out!! I thought that as soon as I got it out, I'd go into labor....nothing yet!! I'll keep everyone posted!

We're Home!

We're back home...both doctors, the ob/gyn and neurologist, said everything looked good. So, now we're home, exhausted!! I'm still having lots of contractions, but they're not super close together. So, our plan is to be here until they get harder and closer together. Thanks so much for all of the prayers. Who knows?!?! We may have a baby by this weekend!! :)

Hospital...Round 2

Well, yesterday I had my regularly scheduled doctor's appointment. Everything was going well. I'm dilated to 2cm and still just about 60% effaced..Dr. Baker was going to take me off of the terbutaline pump on Sunday night!! YEAH!! Well..as he was leaving the room, Janet (Paul's mom) reminded me to tell him about an incident that happened a week from this past Sunday. Mom, Kristen, Sean, and Paul were hanging around in the pool and I went outside to lay on a lounge chair to visit with them. I had a fan blowing on me so I wouldn't get too hot. WELL....I lost peripheral vision in my left eye for about 10-15 minutes. It really scared me, but I figured I just got too hot. So, I went inside, and didn't think too much about it again. Anyways, I mentioned that to Dr. Baker yesterday. He seemed really concerned and called the specialist I'd seen before, Dr. Kirshan. They decided I needed to see a neurologist, Dr. Lindsey, and it needed to happen that day. He also ordered a full ultrasound with lots of measurements again. The ultrasound looked okay. According to this ultrasound, Addison weighs around 6 lbs, 8 oz!!! She's getting so big! Anyways, the nurse came back to me and said "Dr. Baker said head on over to Labor and Delivery...FUN FUN!
So, I went to the triage, where they hooked me up to monitors again. They decided that they were going to do an MRI/MRA of my brain, head, and neck to check for small strokes or blood clots. Dr. Lindsey was going to come over, but didn't. Dr. Baker did come over and I told him that my legs were hurting. He went ahead and ordered an ultrasound of my legs to make sure everything was okay there. Then, around 8:00, I finally went to do the MRI.
I had never had one before!! It was crazy!! Lots of loud noises and you have to lay absolutely still for about an hour. We should be getting the results today. I was able to get off the terbutaline pump, so I'm hooked up to the monitors to see how my contractions go. They're still happening.
So, it's 10:30 am on Thursday morning. We're waiting on the doctors to get here to give me the results. Paul spent the night here with me. The rooms here are huge!! It actually feels like we're in a hotel with room service!! :)
Once we hear something, I'll post the results. As of right now, please keep us in your prayers!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all of the moms out there! This is my first one! Paul got me a beautiful card, that made me cry this morning. Other than that, I think it's going to be a pretty normal day...I had 5 contractions this morning, which is high (but, unfortunately normal for me.) I just had to take a demand dose of my meds, drink some water, and retest. I'm waiting on the nurses to call me back. Lots of people keep saying "Wouldn't it be great to have Addison on Mother's day?!?!?" At this point, my answer is YES!! I know she needs to keep growing inside me, but all of the contractions and bedrest are exhausting! I'm so tired of it all!! We really can't wait to meet our little girl!! Last night, (even though I'm not supposed to be up), I walked around in Addie's room and hung up a few more clothes from the shower Paul had at his office. Paul bought the letters that spell her name and painted them pink yesterday. I can't wait for him to put them up on her wall!! It's going to be so cute! Later on today, I'm hoping he can hang the letters, along with her valance for the window. I still want to get some shelves for her wall to put a few pictures and her piggy bank on. I'm hoping that I can get all of this done when I get off bedrest. (If my doctor lets me off of bedrest when I get off the pump in a week and a half!) If not...we'll just have to do it later. I'm thinking of writing Addie a letter today...my first one, since it's Mother's day.
The nurses just called back...4 contractions!! GRRR!! It got some better, with less irritability, but I'm still having them. I totally think she'll come when I get off these meds...There won't be a whole lot of waiting around. (At least, I hope not!)
Well, I'm off to take a shower and try to start my funfilled day of laying around!! Again, Happy Mother's day to all!

34 weeks and counting!

Yesterday I had my weekly doctor's appointment where we got to take a peek at what Addie looks like with the 4D Ultrasound. I can't believe how much she's changed!! Into a "real" baby!! The orangish picture is what I'm talking about. For those of you who are not sure what you're looking at, step back from the screen. It's Addie's face with her arms/hands right in front of her face. That's how her daddy and I sleep, so I have a feeling she'll be that way too! She always has her hands in front of her face. Well, my doctor had to go do an emergency C-section, but I decided I wanted to wait on him, rather than see a nurse practitioner. I have had TONS of contractions lately, some lots bigger than the others. I knew the nurses from Healthy Connections, the place where I send my monitoring strips daily, were calling my doctor to give him an update on me. I wanted to talk to Dr. Baker, rather than someone else. Anyways....we waited for about an hour until he came back. Hey, I had nothing better to do. I'm on bedrest, remember! When we finally got to see him, he said that I', 1 1/2 cm dilated and still 60% effaced. So, not much changes, even after all of the contractions!! He went ahead and upped my medicine to a continuous/automatic dose, meaning that I will constantly be getting meds in my system to try to slow/stop the contractions. Other than that though, things looked good. He plans to take me off of my pump in 2 weeks, when I'm 36 weeks. I'm hoping I'll have her soon after that. I told Paul that I plan to be getting up more, going up and down the stairs, telling her to get out of me!! :) Addison weighed approximately 5 lbs, 15oz already, so she's gonna be a big baby!! I've calculated that she has gained about half a pound a week, so if she comes at 36 weeks, she'll be around 7 pounds. I can handle that! Oh, the other pictures that I'm including are one showing that she has hair. It's kind of hard to see, but her hair is the little white lines that the arrows are pointing to. The other picture is her profile. Hope you guys enjoy.

And, yes, I'm surviving on bedrest. Luckily, I kind of have a schedule as to when my friends/family is going to drop by. My days this week are full of people!! This is super exciting for me! Hopefully I don't have much longer on bedrest. Two weeks may sound short, but it's incredibly long for someone who has to lay there all day!!

Again, thanks to everyone who has been helping out around here, whether it be to just come keep me company, bring food, or both!! It's truly appreciated!