40 weeks + 1 day Pregnant

Yesterday was father's day. We had our annual picnic with Scott's mom's side, and then climbed the Marsh Tower...
Yep...I climbed that...144 steps. Not one damn contraction! FML...Later on, I was sewing up some cloth wipes and at 11pm started getting a few contractions. We went to bed shortly after, I felt like something was definitely going on. I tried not to get to excited, and ended up falling asleep around midnight or a bit after. I woke a few times to some contractions, but eventually fell deeper into sleep and by morning, there was nothing again. I had my chiropractor appointment today and she did the labor inducing pressure points again. She predicted from feeling my pressure points that it will be today or tomorrow. God I hope so!! I did get a few contractions from her adjusting me and using the pressure points. And I have continued having very few mild contractions since. I have since done the dishes and plan to finish cleaning up the house. Not sure what the rest of the day holds for us, but I might go buy some castor oil. We'll see.

More soon! :) 

Labor Watch #2

Method #2 Walking

Attempted: 6/2/13

How far along: 38 weeks

Purpose: helping baby engage lower in the pelvis

Results: one major hill, and 2 miles later...i had one contraction. until hours later, when I went to bed. I was having contractions lasting 1 minute with 2 1/2 minutes rest in between. I ended up falling asleep, and woke three times to pee. Each time, I noticed a contraction, but by the time I woke up, nothing. Oh well...

Method #3 Pressure Points (done by my chiropractor)

Attempted: 6/3/13

How far along: 38 weeks 1 day

Purpose: brings on labor

Results: I will let you know :) ... A bit of cramping, but nothing really happened. BUMMER!!

Labor Watch #1

Like I mentioned in my previous post (week 37) I will be posting updates on our experiences trying to get things moving along. Tomorrow marks 38 weeks. I realize that some people will be appalled that we are trying to naturally induce already, but I will not justify my actions. I know that if baby isnt ready, it wont work. We are starting with the least drastic methods of course.

Method #1 Sex

Attempted 6/1/13

How far along: 37 weeks, 7days

Purpose: ripening the cervix

Results: My braxton hicks contractions did pick up, but have tapered off so far. We'll see what happens once I get to work and am walking around for 6 hours.

Contractions: vary, from 9 minutes apart lasting for 2 minutes, to 16 minutes apart lasting 1 minute. Currently its been 30 minutes since my last.

Tonight we will take a walk, and I will update this post in the morning with the results.

Overall results: while sex was fun (duh!) and I did get a few contractions, it didnt stick. Oh well. Next time. :) and it rained cats and dogs here, so the walk was out. Bummer. 

Pregnancy Week 4

Looking back on week 4...
This week felt pretty uneventful. My nausea subsided, and my boobs have grown (unfortunately) and are painful enough for me to wear a sports bra to bed--not an easy task for the 38DDD girls--, my mood was pretty good until later in the week where I became very irritable and cried over something I can't even remember. I still feel little twinges every now and again. My appetite seems to be either not hungry or ravenous. I am trying to eat smaller meals more often throughout the day. We'll see what happens when I start my new job. (They are finalizing my offer with the VP on Monday, so then hopefully I will be employed again by the end of next week!)

Baby is the size of a poppy seed!

New this week:
I've started a 30 min prenatal yoga routine that I complete in the early morning before I start my day.

How far along: 4 weeks

Total weight gain: 2 pounds

Maternity clothes: not yet

Stretch marks: no new ones

Sleep: good! Only waking to pee once during the night, and once early morning.

Best moment this week: getting my jack skellington cloth diaper!! <3 Fluff Mail!

Miss anything? Coffee and diet pepsi

Movement: none yet

Food Cravings: mexican!

Anything make you queasy/sick: eggs, many smells, anything tight on my pelvic region.

Gender Prediction: Boy

Symptoms: tender/swollen breasts!! nausea, dizzy, tired midday, little stretchy pangs in my uterus.

Wedding ring: On

Mood: irritable and emotional, especially later in the week


Looking forward to: Meeting a doula and midwife next week!

CD2

AF came yesterday. Booooo!!!! :-( I really thought I felt different this time. Hopefully Sept will be our month. :) Again, I wont be temp-ing, but I will be using OPK's. 

In other news, I put my 2week notice in at my job! FINALLY! Don't get me wrong, there are so many things that I love about working there, but sometimes it just wears ya down. Luckily, Scott's work situation has improved greatly and we are on our way to our planned future! w00t!!

Bright Blessings and Baby Dust!!

N.

Crunchy Momma

 Here's to all the Crunchy Momma's out there...

 1. Cloth Diapers! While the photos here shows BumGenius, there are so many different kinds that your head could explode! Nothing screams natural crunchy momma than cloth diapers!! Here's the link to the ones shown.

2. Cloth Wipes! Again, the photo shows the BumGenius brand, and I will be making mine from flannel scraps, and the receiving blanket overload I'm sure I'll get. At first it didn't occur to me to do cloth wipes, but the more I thought about changing my child's diaper. I'd have to have a cloth diaper pail and a regular diaper pail for the wipes?! Wait...no way, it's way to easy to just have one and throw them in the wash with the rest of the diapers.

3. Reusable Cloth Nursing Pads. well...duh! why wouldn't I use these? Breast milk is water soluble so it's not like these little guys wouldn't get clean. The ones shown are some organic kind, but you can find them all over etsy and other sites from WAHMs. I will more than likely make my own. (sensing a trend here?)

4. Nursing Cover. Clearly I plan on breastfeeding, and while in public, I really don't want/need gawkers, so these little covers will definitely help. They have a wire in the upper hem that you can bend outward to see your beautiful baby. Here's the one shown.

5. Boppy or any other breastfeeding helper. I used to work in a daycare in the infant room. I know how hard it is to keep that sweet little baby up to give him/her their bottles. I always propped a pillow under my arm. I love this cover from Boppy.

6. Breast pump. Again with the breast feeding. I definitely want to go BPA free, and I've heard nothing but great things about Medela. This model seems pretty mid-range. It's a scary thing to spend so much money on something your not even sure you will be able to use. If that is your main concern, there are smaller hand pump models as well. It wouldn't be a bad idea to start off with a hand pump, and then move up to a larger model if needed.

7. Beaba Babycook or any type of food processor really. I will most definitely be making my child's baby food. There really is no reason not to. You will be aware of what is going in to your child as well as saving you TONS of money! The Beaba freezer containers are amazing! They have a soft silicone bottom so you can easily pop one out.

8. Think Baby BPA free dishes. These are amazing! Nuff said.

9. Ergo Carrier. This is the sport version. Out of all the carriers I've heard about, the Ergo is the most talked about, and the most raved about. This would be nice to be fitted for my husband, and I could have the wrap that I talk about in #10.

10. Baby K'tan. I really love the two shoulder sling wraps. This one can be worn so many ways, and can also be used for breastfeeding covertly in public. Sneaky sneaky!