37 weeks - FULL TERM!

Hard to believe Colten is full term now! This pregnancy has flown by, but of course now seems to be slowing down since we are ready for his arrival! Had my 36 week checkup last Wednesday. I was 50% effaced (thinned out) and his head had dropped a bit. My doctor signed off to put me on bedrest starting Labor Day. I am glad that this is my last week as I am exhausted and swelling, and its much harder to climb the stairs to my office now! She still thought I would make it to 39 weeks but of course its all up to Colten now.

I go back tomorrow for my weekly checkup. I am hoping that I have thinned out some more, and maybe (fingers crossed) dilated some. If I have made significant progress I will probably go ahead and take off from work instead of finishing out the week.

I am still procrastinating on packing my hospital bag. I pretty much have everything I need to go in it, just haven't actually packed it yet. Corey wants to wait and pack his bag until I am actually in labor. The carseat has been installed so that is ready to go at least.

I will update after my appointment tomorrow - lets hope for some progress! I am ready to meet my sweet baby boy!

No baby will be coming this week

Had my 35 week checkup this week. They swabbed me to test for Group B Strep and the doctor also decided to go ahead and check my cervix since my sister, me and my neice were all born at 35 weeks. I had been having some cramping this week along with a lot of pressure that makes my pelvis feel like I've been riding a horse constantly.

Baby is still heads down and should remain that way, but his head is still pretty high and my cervix was closed. Thank goodness because I am not quite ready for him to come just yet!

His heartbeat sounded good although the poor thing had hiccups. I will go back next Wednesday for another cervix check, and will continue to do so weekly until he arrives.

Tomorrow, my mom and I are going to Charleston for the day. We are going there because they have a Babies R Us and I need to pick up some of the items we didn't receive off of our registry. We will also be visiting my Grandmother in the hospital as she had neck surgery today at 82!

Hopefully we will have a nice trip and I won't be too worn out or swollen afterwards. That's all for now :)

Can my baby bump get any bigger?

The baby bump at 34 weeks and 3 days. I feel like I can't get any bigger but I still have a few more weeks for Colten to grow!

Definitely starting to feel how far along I am now. Corey says I am crabbier (which to be honest I totally am!). My feet are swelling a bit more, and I can no longer wear my rings. I can get them on, but they are getting tougher to get off so I figured to be safe I better quit wearing them. My back is gettting sore more often, and its definitely harder to get out of the bed and off of the couch with my belly being so big now. Bending over is also fun!

I am taking afternoon naps whenever possible and laying down during the day on weekends. I am actually sleeping better at night even though I am still getting up 3-4 times to go to the bathroom, but it seems that no matter how much sleep I get I still feel exhausted.

This Saturday is going to be a busy day. Corey and I have an Infant Care Class Saturday morning, and after lunch I am taking a breastfeeding class. They are taught at Healthfinders in the mall and are free which is great. That evening my Grandmother and Aunt Kym are throwing me my last baby shower for the Beckham side of my family. I am really excited to see everyone especially my family that lives out of town.

This past weekend I wore myself out working on organizing Colten's room. I did about 5 loads of laundry on Saturday. I washed and put away all of his clothes up to 3 months, blankets, bibs, burp cloths, socks, hats, and bedding. I finally put his bedding together on the crib and love it. During this week I have also washed the covers for his bouncy seat, carseat, and any stuffed animals that were washable. I am hoping after this last shower my Dr will allow me to make a day trip to Charleston to go to Babies R Us for any last items we haven't received. While there I want to pick up the closet organizers, and bins for his changing table so I can finished organizing everything. For now, a lot of things are in piles ready to be put away. I at least got his clothes either hung up in the closet or folded and put in his dresser.

Last night I washed all of the teethers, pacifiers, parts for the breastpump, medicine dispensers, etc. I put together our electric sterilizer so that once he comes I can throw everything in it. Its awesome, its holds 6 bottles and sterilizers in 5 minutes. I can also sterilize the pacifiers etc after any bottles. I am hoping I will be able to breastfeed and if so I won't need the bottles for a few weeks anyway.

I am trying to make a list of any last things I need to do before he comes so I can get them done in the next week or so. My next task is to pack my hospital bag and have Corey install the carseat in my car.

I go back to the Dr next Thursday the 19th for a checkup and to be tested for Group B Strep. I am hoping while I am there that they will go ahead and check my cervix since its only a week short of when they normally start doing that. Corey and I think he will make his arrival around the 7th or 8th of September...I guess we will be finding out soon when Colten wants to make his arrival!

33 week checkup - Colten is head's down!

I went back to the doctor yesterday (August 2nd) for my growth ultrasound and 33 week checkup. Colten measured in the 60th percentile and they estimated his current weight at 4lbs 12 oz. The doctor said I have an abundance of fluid (not too much just more than necessary) so that may be why I was measuring big at my last appointment. His heartrate was great and so was my blood pressure (120/70). She gave me a low dose of Ambien to try for the nights I am having trouble sleeping. That's really every night but I will probably only use it nights I am really tired or on weekends. Last night I took it, but I only took 1/4 of the dose since I have never taken it before. I still woke of 3-4 times but definitely slept for longer periods between waking up. I only woke up to use the bathroom instead of waking up due to my hips aching or being uncomfortable.

Doctor thinks I may have had some braxton hicks contractions without realizing it. I told her that every once in a while I wll feel a crampy type feeling real low and sometimes a sharp pain really low in my pelvis. I also notice that my belly gets rock hard at times, but it tends to stay that way for a few minutes and I don't notice it happening in a pattern. She said the baby's movements can cause my uterus to contract and I might not realize its happening.

The ultrasound also revealed that Colten is definitely heads down. My doc thought he was at the last appt by feeling my belly but the ultrasound confirmed. His head is down, with his butt up near my ribs on the right side. He is turned sideways with his spine running down the right side of my belly and his feet and hands on the left side of my belly. Guess that's better than getting kicked in the ribs!

I go back in 2 weeks for the Group B strep test and my 35 week checkup. After that I will go once a week to have my cervix checked for signs of thinning or dialation. Thankfully I was able to make all of my last appointments with the doctor I really want to deliver me. There are 5 doctors at my OB's office, and they are all nice, but Dr. Golden is my favorite. She is also really good with the dad's and has a great bedside manner. I just feel really comfortable with her and know she will make Corey and I both more comfortable during my labor/delivery. I wanted to have my last appts with her in case we decide to be induced. Otherwise if I go into labor on my own, it will be whoever is on call. Glad that I like all of the doctors since we won't know when Colten decides he is ready to come out!

We have an infant care class coming up in a couple weeks. I also have a breastfeeding class that same day, and that evening is my last shower being thrown by my Aunt Kym and Grandmother. Looking forward to seeing all of the family on my Dad's side.

I am hoping I can get my office organized at work over the next couple of weeks in preparation for my maternity leave. I also hope to maybe have a week off before Colten comes so I can do last minute preparations in his room. My mom came over last weekend and helped me organize all of the gifts we had received so far. I now have a couple piles of laundry to do for all of his sheets, bedding, newborn clothes, burp cloths, etc. Hopefully we will have everything ready soon :) 48 days and counting til my due date!

Maternity Photo Shoot

Just reached 32 weeks (8 months) on Monday July 26. This past Sunday, my sister Tina (Tina Ammons Photography) took maternity pictures for Corey and I. She made me feel beautiful even though I am beginning to feel like a cow! These are just the sneak peaks she has given me, but they turned out so much better than I expected. Can't wait for Colten to be here and be Aunt Tina's new muse. Love you sister!

Baby Showers

Me with my FBCMB Family at my shower thrown by Tina and my mom at Caledonia

Tina, me and my Mom at my shower at Caledonia

Yummy "Rattle" cupcakes made by my sister Tina and my Mom for my shower at Caledonia

Melissa and I at the Burns family shower

Denise, Sarah and I at the Burns family shower

Corey's Grandmom (Mom Mom), his mother Teresa and I at the Burns family shower

Cake from the Burns family shower

Me with my work family at the couple's shower thrown by my boss Tracy

Cake from my work couple's shower

Just wanted to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who has attended my showers or sent us gifts! Thank you to Melissa, Denise, Tracy, Tina, and my mom for hosting showers for me. And also to my Aunt Kym and Grandmother who will be hosting my last shower in August. There are way too many pics from the showers to post but I did want to put some pics of the cakes/cupcakes from the showers as they were all so creative! Colten is being spoiled already with his gifts. Thankfully my mom is coming over this weekend to help me organize everything! Thank you cards have been written, I just keep forgetting to drop them in the mail!

31 weeks and belly pics!

The belly at 31 weeks

View of my belly looking down while sitting at dinner with friends. Thought this angle was funny...2 days shy of 31 weeks in this pic

I can't believe that I am only 1 week shy of being 8 months prego! This past weekend, we went out to dinner with some friends at Market Common. It was really nice to have a night out with everyone, since those might be few and far between pretty soon!

Monday - I had my 31 week checkup. My blood pressure was a little high (135/75) but I expected that. It has been a stressful few weeks at work. The attorney that I am the paralegal for has been out for about 3 weeks with health problems, and just last week had to have a brain tumor removed. Unfortunately, we have found out that she will be battling cancer for the 3rd time. She has had 2 bouts with breast cancer, and has been cancer free for almost 2 years. Her pathology showed that the breast cancer has metastasized to her brain. Thankfully the surgeons were able to remove all except for a small sliver too close to her spinal cord. She will undergo 10 radiation treatments over a 2 week period and will then have monthly scans to check for cancer popping up anywhere else. We have been very busy so it was shock to suddenly not have her here, plus now it looks like she will be out of work until I start my maternity leave. So....lots of pressure at work!

Colten's heartbeat was great, and then came the news that my uterus was measuring 4 weeks ahead! At my 28 week checkup, my uterus measured 29 cm. At this checkup (31 wks) it measured 35 cm! She felt my belly and said she thought Colten was heads down with his butt up on one side, and his feet on the other side (at least he isn't kicking me in the ribs!). She said he could just be in a position that is pushing my uterus up higher than normal, or he could be having a growth spurt and will even out. Either way, she scheduled me to come back in 2 weeks for a growth ultrasound to have him measured. If he is measuring larger than average, she said they will start checkin my cervix sooner for signs of thinning/dilation. If he measures normal, they will start checking my cervix at 36 weeks. Either way - they definitely won't let me go past 40 weeks, but may not want me to go past 38 or 39 if he is large.

Apparently my father in law was a 10 lb baby (thanks Teresa for never telling me this til now! haha) and Corey was almost 8lbs, but being born in Colorado with the altitude difference apparently may have been closer to 9 lbs had he been born here. The men in my family are of a large stature, not overweight just big boned and built like professional baseball and football players. So...we may have a big boy on our hands! I am just hoping that if I need to go earlier because of his size that my body is ready to go into labor on its own or be induced so that I can still deliver naturally and not have to have a c-section. Our plan is to try and get through as much of the early/mid labor as possible without pain medication (or possibly only Stadol) so that I can walk around and use the birthing ball to let gravity help him move down. If I can get through it completely great, but if not I would just like to labor as much as possible before getting the epidural. But - I have never been through anything like this, so if I go in and get the epidural at 2 cm I will feel no shame! :)

I go back August 2nd for my 33 week check up and the growth ultrasound.