HAPPY BIRTHDAY EMILY!

We are so excited to announce that EMILY IS HERE! I came in this morning for the induction at 8am. I had already made great progress- I was 3cm dilated and 100% effaced. They started pitocin at 9:30 and I worked through about 5-6 real contractions before I DESPERATELY asked for the epidural! At 1:30 I started to push and at 1:41 she was in my arms!
She weighed 6 pounds 10oz and is 19 inches long. She is amazing and we are so in love already.
The pictures is of me 2 seconds before changing into my gown to get the ball rolling this morning. My very last picture of Emily in my belly!

SURPRISE Baby News!

We had our last OB appt this morning and the doc was concerned about inducing on Monday- he said there were 8 other women on the schedule to be induced that morning and was afraid we wouldn't get in. I was bracing myself for him to suggest later in the week....when he asked, "How does SUNDAY sound?" SUNDAY SOUNDS TERRIFIC!! So Miss Emily is coming 24 hours sooner than we thought- we are SOOO excited!!! Now we are supposed to show up at 8am and he predicts she'll be here in the afternoon sometime, or early evening at the latest. Woo hoo!!

Just 2 days to go till we meet our little princess!

37 Weeks and a Countdown!

I had my 37 week appointment today and I have a wonderful announcement- Emily's days in Womb Land are numbered!!! We have an induction scheduled for Monday October 22 (38 weeks and 4 days).
The doc said Emily's ultrasounds that we do every Tuesday look great and that she is a great weight for her age. During the visit he said he wanted to make an appointment for next Friday and asked if I was comfortable- hahahahahahahah-- that's a big fat NO!!! He offered to look at induction dates and I told him I'd love him forever if we could talk about it. He left the room for a few minutes to look at the call calendar and came back with either the 21st or the 22nd. The 21st IS a day closer, I know...but it's my puppy Booker's first birthday- so I just couldn't let Emily's arrival overshadow his "big day". I'm sure after she's born we won't even know we HAVE dogs, let alone remember their birthdays! :)
So there we have it! Tomorrow starts the SINGLE DIGIT countdown to parenthood for us! Paul and I are beyond excited and can't wait to meet our little lady. Of course, if she came before then that would be great too, but it's just super nice to have an end in sight. T minus 10 days!! :)

In Good Time....

Emily is still cooking! Can you believe it? After all those false alarms in September and tons of docs saying we'd deliver any day, here we are over 1 month later than when the pre-term labor issues began. Guess Emily is trying to tell us two things- number one, she's a typical girl and is keeping everyone waiting, and number two- that SHE makes the rules!! Let's hope Paul and I are ready for someone who seems to have so much personality already! :)

As always- we'll keep you posted on her arrival (well, if she ever decides to come out!)

Still Ticking!

We're still ticking- just 5 more days till we are considered "safe" to deliver. I am feeling very uncomfortable and I really feel like Emily has "dropped" yet again. I have a lot of pain/ pressure so I'm thinking that means our days are numbered. She is getting so big and strong now- she pushes out so hard with her feet!
Yesterday Paul and I were watching my belly and all of a sudden you could see the obvious outline of a foot! We touched it and could feel her tiny little toes- it was so cute.
I am gradually getting more emotional- I cried watching some news story the other night about an African choir that came to town. I have no idea what was so moving about it but I burst into tears....and then Paul and I had a good laugh at what a crazy woman I've become.

We'll keep you posted if anything changes. For now, Miss Emily is still baking in there! :)

H-O-M-E

This morning we had another u/s and a non-stress test (NST) to monitor for ctx and I again had a "quiet' uterus so I am at home now. I am on modified bedrest- every hour I need to spend 50 minutes sitting or lying down, getting up basically only to use the bathroom. My only outings between now and when she is born will be to go to the doctor. I am going for weekly appointments which will include a BPP (biophysical profile u/s to monitor her growth and check her fluid level), NST, and internal cervical checks. Basically, once the rest of my cervix is gone it will begin to dilate and we will deliver whenever active labor starts--there's no more meds they can/will give to stop it. So, cross your fingers, toes, legs, eyes, everything you've got that we make it at least till Sept. 28-- that puts us at 35 weeks and 1 day, which, if all is well with her when she's born, means she avoids a NICU stay and can leave with us to go home. Woo hoo! Just 16 more days of baking and we can have a baby! :)

I'm so glad I did all her laundry last weekend! ;)

Mommy's Birthday!

Today is my (Allison's) birthday, and I'm spending it in the hospital...not what I expected at all! Last night the ctx were not as frequent so they said if I make it through the next 48 hours and stay "pretty quiet" I may get to serve my sentence at home! So cross your fingers- I'd love to get out of here! :)
PS- You know, at first I was really upset that Paul was on call on my birthday, but now that’s a whole lot more convenient than I had thought before!