HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday! We had a great time in North Carolina hanging out with family. We made it back home with no baby! Whoo hoo! The ride there was bad. It rained the whole way, very cold and horrible traffic. We decided to leave on Saturday morning to miss all the traffic and it worked out nice. Jackson was acting up a little giving me some contractions that were probably about five an hour. Once I got up or had a glass of water he stopped. Did some after Thanksgiving day shopping and all in all had a great time. We got back and started putting up some Christmas decorations. 1 month left!!!!!

34 week appointment

Everything is still going well. I gained a pound in two weeks so I am now at 132. Doc says my weight could start tappering off now that were getting close. Jackson's heart beat was in the 12o range and he's still head down! She did some palpations around my belly to feel how he was positioned and he did not like it one bit! She told me he was going to be pretty active the rest of the day because of it! My next appointment is in two weeks and that will be the start of my internal exams which I'm not looking forward to! Ouch!

We got the go ahead to travel to North Carolina for Thanksgiving next week. She told us to put the carseat in the truck and bring our hospital bags just in case.

That's about it for now. Hope everyone is having a great week!

Scary feeling Saturday night

This past Saturday we went to a wedding reception and they had a dj playing. The base was so loud Jackson kept kicking and rolling around in my belly all night. As we were leaving I felt fine but as soon as we stopped to drop some friends off I started feeling a little queasy. My mouth started watering like I was going to get sick! The whole way home I was trying to take deep slow breaths just to keep the nausea away while at the same time Jackson was kicking me the whole time. When we pulled into our driveway I started shaking and my body got kind of weak. Scott helped me upstairs to bed and it finally subsided. I wasn't concerned it was anything to do with him such as early labor because I wasn't contracting. Sunday I felt blah all day but nothing like Saturday night. We figured it was the loud music and his excessive movements were just making me nauseous. All is better now though!

32 Week Doc Appt.

Everything is going well. I gained another 4 pounds! (So that is were the Halloween candy went!) "-) I'm now at 131 pounds! Eeek! Doc said baby is doing well. Heartbeat was 140. He is head down. Hopefully he will stay that way! Asked him about my night sweats and he said that is perfectly normal. Not really much I can do about that!

I go back in two weeks until 36 weeks, then I go every week until he's here! It's getting close!!!!

Well that's all for now. It was a short visit!

Halloween Costume Party

Some pics of our Halloween Costume Party last Saturday night. Don't laugh at my wierd faces! I promise I wasn't drinking! I went as a Harlem Globe Trotters basketball player and Scott painted my belly like a basketball. People actually thought he cut a basketball in half and pasted it onto my belly before they knew it was my real belly! Scott went as the Crocodile Hunter with a sting ray through his chest. Morbid I know but it was probably the best costume there! We had tons of fun!

UVA Football Game

Here we are at the UVA football game. We couldn't pass up free tickets! We had a great time tailgating drinking mimosas and having breakfast tacos. Only OJ for me! :-) We had fun hanging out with friends and enjoying the victory over North Carolina State.

 

32 weeks

Here are some pics of me at 27 weeks (top) and 32 weeks (bottom). A span of 5 weeks. I don't think I look any different than my 27 week pics! Ya'll can be the judge. I don't see a difference!!! This kid is going to be a peanut if he doesn't start growing! :-)

With exactly 8 more weeks to go I'm starting to have trouble sleeping at night. I constantly switch positions from my left to right side and when Scott turns I turn, and when I turn Scott turns. Needless to say we both are having sleepless nights!!! And to make matters worse I'm now having hot flashes in the middle of the night. I wake up soaking wet! It is so disgusting! I can't wait for this part to be over with!!!! My appetite has increased a little too. I made the HUGE mistake of buying Halloween candy early only to have it all gone the day before Halloween!

I have my next doc appointment this Wednesday. Our last class is also this Wednesday. Actually it's not a class but a tour of the hospital and the labor and delivery dept. Scott is so thrilled! Needless to say I signed up for a breastfeeding class as well as a Welcome to Parenthood class! So two more days and we'll be through!

I'll give an update at my next appointment.

Steph

More pics of gifts

Our three drawers are already full to the max of baby clothes, blankets, socks, shoes, hats, etc. We will soon need to buy the matching dresser to fit all of his clothes! And these are just onsies, shirts and sleepers! Eeek!




Here are yet more pics of gifts.

More pics

Sorry for the pic overload. They are long past due! I couldn't help but post these little sneakers and booties! The second pic is part of Jackson's going home outfit. He'll look like a little snow bunny! Third pic is the Daddy diaper bag I bought for Scott. I got Jackson's initials monogrammed on it! Fourth pic is of our bags packed and ready for the hospital. Better safe than sorry! :-)


 

More Gifts from Shower

Here are some more gifts we have received. Couldn't fit all of them in so I'll do several blogs of them. The Pack n Play is from Dad, Teri and Alyson. We now have 2 Pack n Plays so we decided to keep both and have one to stay at the house and the other to travel with. Thanks for the wonderful gifts everyone!


 

Steph's Baby Shower Oct. 14th 2006

Here are some pics from the last baby shower. I had such a great time hanging out with all my girlfriends as well as having Gloria and Mom Dennis in town. Thanks to everyone for all the gifts! By the way I'm 29 weeks here.


 

28 week appointment

28 week appointment was today. Kind of short and sweet. I went and had my blood drawn for my glucose test on Wednesday but they didn't have the results at my appt. today. The drink wasn't all that bad, I kind of liked it and I had an excellent nurse who drew my blood so I didn't feel a thing. I saw another doc, Dr. Heider. I really liked him. He was very informative and also very personable. He checked Jackson's heartbeat which was around the 130-140 range. He measured my fundal height (belly) and he said that was right on target. I gained 3 pounds since my last appointment which puts me at 127, a total of 17 pounds gained. He sort of guessed I'll probably gain 25-28 pounds when it's all said and done. Hopefully that's the case!

I was supposed to start going every two weeks after this visit but he said since I was doing so well he wants my next appointment to be in another month at 32 weeks :-( I look forward to going so it was kind of a bummer.

Our baby classes are going well. Scott still hates it but I managed to drag him to it on his birthday! :-( I made up for it with birthday gifts!!! His birthday was Wednesday. He is 31 years old! My do I feel young! :-) We learned about the different stages of labor, when to go to the hospital, signs of early labor, etc. She also mentioned natural labor instead of having medication such as an epidural. I haven't really thought about it so the more she talked about it the more I became interested in trying to go natural. I've been reading up on the Bradley Method which is a technique using breathing and relaxation to get through the pain. I think I want to try it and if it doesn't work then I know I have an epidural as a backup. I know you all think I'm probably crazy but I know it's better for the baby and plus I would love to experience the whole thing naturally. I don't have strong feelings either way so if it's too painful I won't be disappointed if I need help. But then again the little boy might be breech and not let me have a chance to do it!!!! :-) Anyway, that's my decision. Any advice or support is greatly appreciated!

Jackson has started kicking higher in my ribs now. Just this past week I've been feeling really high kicks and full body rolls! Sometimes it scares me because I'm not expecting it so high! It's getting harder to get up from a sitting position and tying my shoes is a whole other story!

We received more baby gifts and I will post pictures this weekend. Thanks again for the all the wonderful gifts!

Steph

Virtual Shower

Hi Everyone! Just wanted to say thanks for all of the gifts we have received! In a way it is sad our first shower has to be away from home without our family and friends but I guess that is the price you pay when you live out of state! We wanted to share some pics of what Jackson has received so far. Many people have sent giftcards which are wonderful, some gifts we got extra early and some are still on their way! Thanks again everyone for making it a lot easier for us to prepare for his arrival! The pics I have posted are: the stroller and car seat from Aunt Gloria Uncle Rob and Grandpa Reyes, the papasan swing from Aunt Amanda and Uncle Mat, the Aquarium bath tub from Ofelia, Barry and Stephanie and finally the nursery changing table from Daddy, Aida and Nicolas!

Thanks to Lisa, Brett and Bailey, Dale and Maryanna and Sandi and Mike for the generous giftcards!!!!

We will continue to post pics of gifts as we receive them so check in for more updates and pics!

Thanks again to everyone for all their generous gifts and warm wishes!!!

Love Always,
Scott & Stephanie




 

27 wks/Third trimester

Well we've made it to the third trimester! I can't believe how fast it has gone! 10 more weeks and I will be full term!

We had our first baby class Wed night. Scott suffered through it while I thoroughly enjoyed it! We talked a lot about labor and even watched a video of a c-section. Scott about lost it! I do have to give him credit....at least he went. He wasn't too happy about it though! :-) Hopefully he can make it through the next 4 weeks!

As for me I'm doing great. My belly is itching like crazy all of the time and you can see my belly button poke through my shirt! Everyone that comments on my pregnancy already knows I'm having a boy. How they can tell I have no clue. A funny thing is total strangers have been coming up to me rubbing my belly! It weirds me out at first just because I don't know them, but I've learned to enjoy the rubbing part so I don't mind!

We have our next doc appt next friday so I will be able to see how much weight I gained this past month and if I passed my glucose test for gestational diabetes. Keep your fingers crossed! After this appt I will be going every two weeks.

That's all for now! Have a great weekend!
Steph

24 weeks

Had my 24 week appointment today and now I'm starting to meet with some of the other doctors in the practice, just because it can be either one of them that could deliver Jackson. Dr. Arnold assured me he was growing strong and everything looked great. I gained ANOTHER 5 pounds! Yikes! That is 15 total now! He said that was perfect and to keep it up! I have my glucose test (tests for gestational diabetes) at my next appointment at 28 weeks. Then at 30 weeks I go in for a checkup every two weeks and starting at 36 weeks, every week! It is getting closer!!!

I also am starting to feel what are called round ligament pains as well as Braxton Hicks contractions. It feels like a muscle spasm in my belly! Sometimes they are painful but more than anything uncomfortable! :-( The doc said this was normal, just my body "practicing" for the big day!

I know a lot of you are wondering when is a good time to come up to see him. I would prefer if you were all here for the delivery so I asked Dr. Arnold what their protocols were for inducing labor. He said normally they will let a healthy baby go to 42 weeks but that they did have extenuating circumstances when they would induce labor earlier. I told him that we have all of our family coming in from out of state and that they wanted to be present at the birth. He let me know it would not be a problem IF Jackson is healthy and a good weight, there was no problem scheduling an early induction of a week to two weeks earlier than his due date. That would be right before Christmas. Anyways, it is an option we have whether we choose to take it or not. It would definitely help everyone's travel plans unless he desires to make his grand entrance earlier!

That's all for now!
Steph

Jackson's crib/23 weeks

We have a crib! We got it at a garage sale this past weekend for $25! It is only 2 years old and it's solid wood. We were so excited to finally put the bedding on! Now we need a changing table and dresser and we're good to go!

At 23 weeks Jackson is kicking nonstop! It literally makes me queasy! He is the most active in the evenings right before we go to bed. Other than that I'm feeling great, eating as much as I can to get to that 5 lbs mark at our next doc appt. in two weeks.

We had a nice time last weekend at Aunt Gloria and Uncle Rob's house. We attended Jen's shower and had a great time visiting with everyone.

Well, that's all for now.....

Steph




 

It'a a Boy!!!

We had our 21 week ultrasound today and they reassured us that it is indeed a boy! He was being stubborn and was curled up in a little ball which made it tough for the ultrasound tech to get his measurements, but it all worked out and he was kicking and punching me the whole time! He did not like being smushed! His heartrate was 131 and all the measurements were right on track giving an estimated due date of 12/30/2006, one day earlier than my estimated due date. We got great pics of him and he even waved to us!

Scott even felt him kick for the first time in the office!

Jackson's stuff

Just letting you know what the bedding looks like that Nina & Jim bought us!

20 Weeks/ 27th B-day

WE'RE HALF WAY THERE! I can't believe it's already been 20 weeks! Time has flown by. We had a regular check up this past Thursday and I got a great report from the doc. I gained 7 pounds in 4 weeks! I am now 119. She was excited that I put on some weight and wants me to gain around 5 more pounds by my next visit in 4 weeks. Jackson's heartbeat was well within the normal range and the doc was able to feel him at the top of my uterus even with my belly-button.

We have our BIG sonogram this coming Thursday to make sure all of his measurements are on track and also to verify the sex. Hopefully nothing has changed but if so......we're ready!

We received the rest of the bedding and room decor from Nina and Jim and also recieved our Pack-n-Play and baby monitors from Angie. Thanks so much for the early gifts! Everything is starting to pile up in the nursery, it's hard to believe that it's all for this little guy!

I also started a prenatal yoga exercise program. I'm starting to feel a little clumsy with all this extra weight so I thought this would help balance things out. It's not as easy as it looks! I have to take breaks through some of the exercises. I feel like a wimp!

We registered for our birthing classes also. We start at the end of September and it goes through November. They told me they like for couples to finish at least a month before their due date in case the baby decides to make an early appearance. We also signed up for a breast feeding class as well as a Welcome to Parenthood class that teaches you how to bathe, soothe, feed, etc. I signed up for every class I could! Signing up for these classes made it seem that more real that he will be here in 4 more months!

My birthday was this past Saturday... 27 years old. Still 3 shy of 30! Scott suprised me with tickets to a James Taylor concert this week! We also went out to Lake Anna and had a picnic and tried to fish but it was so packed we couldn't find a place to park and it was starting to get annoying. We decided to leave and came back to the fishing pond we always go to. I caught the one and only fish and Scott caught nada! All in all it was a fun day. The weather was nice with fall like temperatures.

Good luck to Alechia, Jamey and Rian as they welcome their newest edition to their family, Ella Nicole Lamm, this coming Thursday August 17th! We wish we could be there to share this wonderful time with you. Keep us posted and send lots of pics of our first niece!

Well that's all for now. I'll post another blog this coming Thursday!

Hugs and Kisses to everyone!

Scott & Stephanie

19 weeks

Ok, here I am at 19 weeks. Almost to the halfway point!!!! I swear I feel WAY bigger than I look! Believe it or not Jackson is about 6 in right now! That's as big as my hand! He's still a little peanut but is supposed to gain double his weight in the next couple of weeks. I have officially started feeling him kick. Of course he is quiet during the day and then wide awake at night! He actually woke me up last night from a dead sleep kicking like crazy! I guess he's getting me ready for the late nights to come! :-) It's a very strange feeling, almost like popcorn popping inside me! Anyways, it's a great feeling to know he's growing and getting stronger.

Well my rash is still here....still itching like crazy. I guess I can't complain if this is all I get...yeah right. I'm sure there will be more surprises along the way!

We received the bedding from Nina and Jim last week (Scott's mom and stepdad). We are so excited the colors matched perfectly with the green paint we used. I'm so glad I FINALLY decided on a bedding theme. I don't know how many times I've changed my mind!

Our next OB appointment is August 10th and then our BIG ultrasound is on August 17th (Baby Ella's birthday!). Since we already know it's a boy this is just to get a second opinion so to speak to see if Jackson has changed to Isabelle! Luckily our colors are neutrals but from the last ultrasound it was pretty obvious it was a boy! ;-)

Well that's all for now.....

Steph & Scott