Braxton Hicks vs. Real Contractions

The last 48 hours have been interesting....

Although I have been getting Braxton Hicks contractions for the past several weeks, they typically were most noticeable during the evening. Two days ago, I began noticing them more during the day as well as the evening. Two nights ago, I had a couple of ones that were a little stronger. I didn't think much of it, just assumed they were Braxton Hicks.

Jason on the other hand, the next day called me several times to "say hi", but kept asking if I was having contractions. I told him that I was having them throughout the entire day, but tried to reasure him that they were Braxton Hicks. He tried convincing me to call the hospital to get checked out. I kept telling him it wasn't necessary, but he wasn't giving in. I told him then he should call if he were that concerned.

So....Jason called and the ladies he talked to weren't quite understanding why he was calling and not me.haha. They asked "Well is she with you?", no, "well we usually have the nurses talk to the mom to be", He told them that I didn't want to call that they should call me instead. So as I was finishing up my day at school my phone rang and sure enough it was one of the nurses. Since I hadn't had time to time them all day, and I wasn't buckled over, she told me to go home, put my feet up, drink lots of water, and start timing them out. Below shows our times as far as minutes apart between 4:54 & 8:14

7,4,5,5,5,13,11,10,4,11,7,5,6,5,8,11,7,11,8,13,12,8,11,7,8.

....Throughout this time, Jason and I both went through a roller coaster of emotions (I think we hit ALL of them :) ). Jason was convinced we were going to the hospital that night. He called his boss to make him aware. I told him we weren't, but he decided to start packing. He got as far as his clothes and my robe and stopped b/c he "didn't know what else to pack". At this point I started getting convinced that we might be going in, so I freaked out that I hadn't washed any of the baby clothes yet, so I started a load of wash. Then realized I hadn't washed my new nursing p.j.'s so when the baby clothes were done I started another load. Jason made dinner all while saying "we're not going to be able to even eat this, we're going to end up going to the hospital. By 8:00 I decided to call the hospital, since I now had "numbers" to give them. They told me to take a warm shower, drink water, and keep monitoring. They said they are most likely still Braxton Hicks, but if they were to average consistently closer to the 5-10 range, then to come in. After the shower I was sick of "monitoring", so I finished packing a bag and decided to go to bed. I knew that if it were the real thing I wouldn't be able to fall asleep or I'd be woken up throughout the night. Needless to say, we didn't go to the hospital. Today at school I didn't have quite as many, but still a lot. Tonight we have LaMaze class #3, so if they were to get closer together tonight, we'll already be at the hospital! It is my prediction that we are still a ways off from D-day, but I thought I'd let you all have the update :).

***I'm looking forward to seeing many of you on Sunday at the Baby Shower in Appleton!

Minocqua Baby Shower

Last weekend my mom and sister's threw me a wonderful baby shower. Several months ago we were not sure if we'd be able to find a weekend that would work out. Although it was in the middle of January in northern Wisconsin, we lucked out with a wonderful weekend. What was extra special was that some of our out of town relatives were able to make it. On Saturday night my parents house was full! Aunt Lucia & Uncle Al, cousins Todd & Anna and Katie, cousin Kari, Tricia & Jeremy, Mom & Dad, Melissa, Jason & I. It was great!

The shower was very nice and included our close family friends in the area. At the shower Tricia and Melissa had us play a game in which we had to guess 6 different types of baby food. I got 4 out of 6 correct. After this experience I have concluded that I will not make our baby eat mac & cheese baby food...it was GROSS! The others weren't so bad: bananas, peaches, squash, peas and one other I can't remember.

The picture of the center piece was a gift I was given. It is a 3 tier cake created by diapers and baby toys. I had never seen anything like it! It was very cool.

***As a side note, yesterday and so far today I've followed directions and have kept my feet elevated as much as possible. :) My ankles are feeling better, however they flare up when I do walk around for awhile. I went to Walmart yesterday, was there about 45 minutes and afterwards I could feel the swelling start up again. I just have to force myself to continue elevating my feet!

Ugh

Well the good news is the pressure I had in my lower abdomen has, at least for the time being, gone away. You would think this would help me get my normal "pace" back. For a few days I was able to keep up the way I had before I had gotten the pressure. Unfortunately, over the past few days my ankles have begun to noticeable swell. As much as I try to listen to my mother and everyone at work, it is VERY hard for me to find (take) the time in the day to sit with my feet up. Lucky for me, we don't have school tomorrow and we have no plans as of yet for the weekend. I'm going to do my very best to follow instructions and keep my feet up as much as possible. I brought home PLENTY of school work to keep me busy as I sit on the couch.

I'm beginning to get overwhelmed with everything I need to do, work wise, in the next several weeks. The end of the semester means, finishing up with grading, IEP quarterly reports, running records. On top of that I have 3 IEP's that I need to complete before I leave, PLUS prepare for my long-term substitute. Lucky for me, my sub is a teacher who just retired from my building 2 years ago, so she knows the building routines and lingo at least!

Okay, time to go put my feet up and try to relax before Lamaze class #2 tonight :)

A new arrival to the world

Today, on January 20, 2009 Nathan and Amber Harrold welcomed their precious little girl to the world, Brynn Isabella Harrold, 6lb 10 oz. Congrats!

Dr.'s Appointment

On Tuesday we had another Dr.'s appointment. This was a the first time that I came with a list of questions/concerns/fyi's. I started going through the list and the doctor stopped me...he said, "Do you want me to answer these as we go or all at the end?" That was his way of telling me I have a really long list. He was able to answer/comment on everything I had which was great. I'm not sure what sparked the list...nerves? excitement? Our next appointment is the first week of February. After that we start going every week. It's crazy how quickly D-Day is approaching!

We are off to Minocqua today once Jason gets done with work. I'm at home for the 2nd day in a row. School has been canceled due to the extreme cold weather. I'm hoping since I'm home, Jason will take off of work a little early so we can get to Minocqua in time for dinner :). We'll see how that goes. Tomorrow my sisters and mom are throwing me a baby shower. I'm excited to see everyone!

Have a wonderful weekend and stay warm!

32 Weeks...and slowing down :(

After Christmas, I definitely "hit a wall".

1. * My bathroom trips at night have increased again
2. * I have a lot of pressure on my lower abdomen when I walk
3. * I trip over everything at work (desks, garbage cans, chairs, etc)
4. * I run out of breath when teaching/talking due to my decreasing lung capacity as this baby continues to grow
5. *I am apologizing to my students, telling them my brain is mush, when I have trouble explaining concepts
6. *I'm very forgetful
7. * Due to the pressure in my lower abdomen I am moving REALLY slow. Jason has to always wait for me when walking places....He is half way to the store as I am just turning the corner around the car! haha
8. * At work I'm hearing comments like "Wow! you are pregnant!" "How much longer do you have?"...I respond 8 weeks...they respond.."Wow". "Are you doing okay" "Do you feel okay"

Overall I still feel good besides the pressure. I think if the pressure wasn't there I'd be walking normally and people wouldn't feel so sorry for me! I'm hoping to get a support belt next week. The students get a kick out of me running into things and my frequent trips to the bathroom. Jason is hanging in there with my slow pace. Jason has also been very supportive as I am not the "happy pregnant person" anymore. I think he took 10 different pictures of me today before I was happy with the way one looked! haha!

Baby Shower #1

The Saturday after Christmas my Aunt Mary Jo and cousins Sarah & Katie threw me a baby shower in Dubuque. Although the threat of ice kept some people away, it still was a great success. We received many nice things at the shower in which we are very grateful. The day we got home I dug into the gifts and put everything in place. So far so good with having a place for everything! But we still have 2 more showers to go...