It's a girl!

Well here she is! Miss Laney Ann Salo. Wednesday proved not to be another false alarm. Those contractions that were 20-30 min apart remained pretty consistent until 11:48 am when a contraction came and just didn't go away. It got strong, then weak, then strong, but just wouldn't go away. I called the nurse to figure out how to time whatever this was...she says "well we really don't like to have you come in until your contractions are about 2 to 3 minutes apart", no sooner after I hung up with her at 12:17 pm, 2 min 2 min 2min...right on the money. So Scott and were off to the hospital in a flash. It was a beautiful 68 degree day and we were going to have a baby :)

We got to the hospital and I'd progressed to 80% effaced and 2 cm dilated so they called me a "keeper", not getting sent home this time. Well I wont share all the details with the world, but things plugged right along. My doctor broke my water and about 5 hours later we welcomed our little miracle into the world at 10:29 pm. "It's a girl" I said through the tears forming in my eyes, I looked at Scott and realized that we just witnessed the most amazing miracle there ever was. We were both so overwhelmed by how much we just instantly loved her. Unexplainable. She weighed 8 pounds 11 ounces and measured 20 3/4 inches long.

We finally got to go home on Saturday, quite a different day from the 68 degrees we came on, it was 17 degrees with about 12 - 14 inches of snow on the ground. The pediatrition sent us home with a little "tanning bed" for Laney to lay in because she was a little jaundice. So she's been spending most of our cuddle time under these lights so that she can be in our arms all the time very soon. Yesterday her numbers were already 2 points lower and another point lower again today.

False alarm :)

We had a big false alarm yesterday. I thought my water had broke...got out of the shower and dried off and had some trickling of red clear water going down my leg. I wasn't for sure so I stood over a white towel while I dried my hair just to make sure I wasn't jumping the gun. Quite a bit more dripped out onto the towel. Sorry if that's too descriptive, but it clearly was something that appeared to be my water breaking. Since the books and doctors alike claim that it can do just about anything from drip to gush, I assumed that is what had happened. My doctor said no matter what, if my water breaks I have to get to the hospital ASAP...so that's what we did. I even had a doc appointment that I was supposed to go to but called and they said go straight to labor and delivery.
Anyway, long story a little shorter, I was having no contractions with this trickle that finally subsided at the hospital of course...so I wondered what was up. They checked me in, hooked me up to monitors, checked me out, and I was not dilated and just 50% effaced...and she said that was generous. I was having small contractions that were registering on the monitor, but I wasn't feeling them. She tested the fluid that was trickling and it proved NOT to be amniotic fluid. They really didn't know what it was, except that they think I had 2 membranes...and the "outer" membrane ruptured and dripped a little fluid but that my amniotic sac and true membrane had not ruptured. So they sent us home :( We had gone into the hospital about 8:30am and they didn't send us home until 2:30pm, so it took them awhile to determine that it was in fact a false alarm. Oh well, the count down continues....or do we count up from here since I'm now past due by 2 days?? After that experience, Scott and I were both exhausted...it was a bit like being told that there was going to be a Christmas, and then all of a sudden that Christmas got canceled this year try again.
Anyway, the update today is NOW I'm having contractions. They woke me up this morning at about 5:30 or so and have been pretty strong and pretty steady all morning. They are not super close together, about 20-30 min apart at this point...with some smaller ones that don't last but just a few seconds in between. I think we'll wait this time until they are consistently strong and are about 10 min apart before we head over there again...who knows how long that will actually take :) but I really don't want to hang out in the hospital all day and then get sent home again.
As of now, we'll just go about our day as normal as we can and see if they 1. continue to be this strong and 2. if they get closer together. We'll keep you updated.

The Due Date - here we are 40 weeks and counting!

Well I kind of figured that I'd be taking this 40 week belly picture...and I'm hoping it will be my last. I'm not surprised Bun's not here yet, I didn't figure my due date was all that accurate anyway, I mean how do they really know anyway, it's just a guess. As of my last doctor visit a little has happened. Last time she stripped my membranes and I think that made Bun mad. After she did that, Bun did a lot of circus flips and karate chops until Friday. I had a few not so intense contractions Tuesday night into Wednesday, Thursday lost my mucous plug, and then Friday everything stopped, nothing since. I think Bun is now protesting!

I'm not really wanting to push things along, I just want Bun to come when it's ready. Scott is getting anxious to give it a name :) and snuggle with it. I guess I feel like I get to snuggle with it all the time, but I'd like to meet it and see it's sweet little face in person.

I had my very first baby dream last night. It wasn't that great, the hospital just sent me home without even naming my kid, in fact I didn't even know if it was a girl or a boy until I peaked after I was home...by the way it was a girl. My hunch the whole time has been boy, but we'll see if my dream was right. Whatever it is, I hope they let me name it before we leave :)

I'll keep you updated after my appointment tomorrow, we'll see what's been happening :)

Doctor Visit update

Nothing really new to report, but thought I'd ease your minds. I'm dilated only 1/2 cm, so basically not at all. I'm softening, and have dropped a very tiny bit, but not very much at all. Doctor predicts that I'll still be pregnant on Jan 19, 2009, and so at my appointment on the 20th she wants to put me on a monitor to check Bun's heartrate for about 30 min or so. She thinks Bun is a normal nice size (whatever that means) and thinks I could even be as much as a week late. So that means pregnant for up to 2 more weeks :) oh goodie!

39 weeks and still waiting

Wow, here we are at the end! Any day this little Bun will make it's appearance. I feel pretty big! The book is a lot less specific about Bun's size now, pretty much saying that is could weigh anything :) but probably between 7 and 8 pounds and about 19-21 inches long.

Nothing more has happened that felt like things were getting started. No more contractions since the last ones a couple weeks ago, just little crampy feelings here and there. We'll see if I've progressed since at the doc appointment tomorrow.

Scott and I are both very ready and excited. Bun is still so active, I can't wait to meet this little monkey! Bun gets the hiccups all the time now and gets pretty frustrated with them after a couple minutes...in fact as I'm typing, Bun has the hiccups right now and is pretty frustrated that they aren't stopping :) It's cute, there are these rhythmical bumps that last a couple seconds, then Bun spazzes out for a sec, gets still and then there the hiccups are again, then Bun will get mad again and moves all over really fast. Poor little Bun, can't wait to meet you!

38 weeks!

I can't believe I'm almost there, well Bun is almost here! Only 2 weeks to go, that is if Bun wants to be "on time". Who really knows anyway.

At my doctor appointment last Tuesday nothing was happening, but that night I started having Braxton Hicks contractions. I had 8 or 9 pretty good ones, then nothing since. Little cramps here and there, but no more contractions. So we'll see if I've progressed any tomorrow at my appointment.

Bun is supposed to be 7 pounds, but the book says that all babies vary and it could be smaller or bigger at this point.

Our bags are all packed and ready to go, just waiting on Bun :)