Tomorrow

It's the big day! I am being induced (provided the hospital isn't too busy)! I cannot wait to meet little miss Hailey Sophia! We are all really curious to know if she is going to have as much dark, dark hair as Emma did or if she will look like Kayla and Eli did. I am praying it goes smooth and as quick as possible tomorrow for all of us involved. And here is one last picture of the belly.....

Another Baby Shower

My mom threw me a baby shower yesterday at her house. It was lots of fun and gave me time to catch up with some friends that I didn't realize just how much I missed them! I haven't exactly been a social butterfly since being put on a "rest" order. Hailey got tons of cute little outfits and is definitely set for the summer time! Now I just have to wash everything and we are good to go.

Emma and her friend Morgan - neither one of them were real interested in smiling for the camera

Kayla and Eli - they spent a good part of the time in the pool in the back yard

My friend Jessica and my sister Ayrah

Pretty Emma

Not the best picture of me and it doesn't really show the belly but here it is!

The cake....see below for a really funny story.....

So we weren't sure what this little baby and flower were made out of. It looked alot like marzipan/fondant. So we pulled it off the cake and inspected. Kayla tried to pull one of the leaves out but it wouldn't break. She licked it and swore it tasted like sugar. She even tried to bite into the leaf. Still wasn't happening. So my mom washes the frosting off the bottom......made in China! turns out to be fake and not edible by any means! But it sure did give us a good laugh!

We have a date now!

As I mentioned before, I will be induced at 39 weeks due to my amniotic fluid issue. So the Dr. discussed dates today and told me to check my calender. No need since I am so ready already! We decided on June 27th. Woohoo a month away! I feel alot better actually knowing the date now so I can totally plan everything. Including what to do with my kids while I am in the hospital.

And despite the fact that I am sick, my fluid was at 9 today! I asked the Dr why it fluctuates so much and she basically said it goes with my hydration level.

The Latest

Sorry it has been so long but the last couple of weeks have been, well, long. So here is what has been going on in our house....

Kayla - she had a school play and had a few lines to say. However, she had no voice because she was sick so she couldn't really SAY anything! I got her on camera but since you can't hear her it isn't very fun! Her last day of school was this past Thurs. She is now officially a 7th grader! Geez she is growing up so fast! I haven't seen her report card yet because they mail out the last one to parents.

Eli - Since finishing soccer his life has been able to slow down a bit. He had a field trip to the zoo on Tues that dad got to go on too. Actually, dad got to be a "helper" on the field trip because there weren't enough adults volunteering! And Eli's last day of school was Thurs and he is no officially a 3rd grader! He got good grades on his report card...he just needs to focus on focusing!

Emma - Her vocabulary is growing by the day. She continues to learn new words and it is fun listening to her try to use them like we do. She will try to repeat something and has to do it very slowly but it usually will come out as close to right as you can expect from a 20 month old! The best though was last Sunday Eli, Emma and I were all in the car and naturally had the radio on. The song Bleeding Love by Leona Lewis came on and all of the sudden Emma started singing it! It was too cute because her voice would go high pitched just like Leona's at the right time. Of course I have tried for a repeat performance so Kayla and daddy could hear it but she isn't cooperating!

As far as the pregnancy goes, my fluid level still continues to fluctuate. I have also been sick with laryngitis (along with the 3 kids) and now am sick again with what my Dr says is just sinus pressure but I suspect a sinus infection. I know that all of this being sick is not helping the rest of my body take care of itself. I had a regular ultrasound (as opposed to the quick fluid check) to see how big the baby is. She weighs approx 4lbs 11oz which apparently is totally average. The Dr. was concerned about size because I tend to have bigger babies. I don't think Hailey will be as big as Emma was especially since she will be born a week early. We did learn that she has flipped to be head down so she is at least obeying as far as that goes!

JR and I celebrated our 9th wedding (13 yrs total) anniversary yesterday! Since I wasn't feeling too hot we just went out to dinner and hung out at home the rest of the night.

Potluck/Baby Shower

A couple of the girls at work had a potluck/baby shower for me on Monday. They did a diaper theme....in other words told everyone to bring diapers and what kind and sizes to bring. I thought that was a great idea because one can never have too many diapers for your baby! There was also lots of yummy food and a really yummy cake. Here are a few pictures from the shower.

One of the ladies at work actually made this cake (she gets to make most of the cakes for work because she does such a good job). It is a layer cake with a fudge middle...yummmm and she has to special order the frosting mix from CA because she can't get it here!

Me "wearing" the cake...there is a picture of me doing the same thing with the cake she made for Emma's baby shower

OB Updates

So over the last few appts that I have had my amniotic fluid level has started to fluctuate. It got as high as 8.9cm and then dropped back down to 6ish cm. The good news/bad news part of that is the ultrasound tech can see a good pocket of fluid but she cannot use it to measure because the area is full of umbilical cord. It was pretty cool looking on the monitor to see it. But holy cow is it long! And as if Miss Hailey didn't think she was being stubborn enough, she has decided to hang out in the transverse position. Which means she was laying with her head on my left side and her little booty on my right side. I say was because she decided to move last night.....so that her head is now on my right and her booty is on my left! I can't seem to convince her that she would be more comfortable if she were to go head down or heck even flip breech! I asked the Dr today how long we wait for her to flip the right direction and she said they usually wait until 36 or 37 weeks and then if she still hasn't flipped they will try to do it manually. I am so hoping I don't have to go through that because I have heard it is a pretty painful process! She also said that this tends to happen with multiple pregnancies because the uterus tends to be more relaxed so it isn't "forcing" the baby to be in any particular position. So everyone out there reading this, please start the prayers that this baby flips head down for me!

Some good news finally

I finally got some good news at my OB appt. My amniotic fluid level has just about doubled! I didn't realize just how low I was before which is probably a good thing. I was at 3 something cm and now I am at 6 something cm.! 6 is still lower than it should be. She would like it to be 10 or higher. I could actually see the difference on the screen when the nurse was doing the ultrasound. The baby's face wasn't right up against the wall! So they told to me to keep doing what I am doing........which is drinking at least 90-100 oz of water a day (not including any other fluids that I may drink throughout the day) and laying down or just relaxing more than I was before. It was so nice to find out that my efforts were finally working. And she said it was an option for me to quit working now and use that extra time to relax. It isn't an option financially or mentally for me at this point so I was glad she wasn't going to "order" bed rest. And I will be induced at 39 weeks no matter what happens. If my fluid levels drop again and I am 37 or 38 weeks, she will induce at that point. So this will be a June baby for sure!

Tuesday's appt

Just to let you all know, there was no change in the amount of amniotic fluid when I had my ultrasound on Tuesday. I also had to do the non-stress test to check on baby. I will have to continue going to the doctor twice weekly for at least the next 5 weeks. I didn't see the dr yesterday so I haven't really had a chance to ask what this all means for me. I will see her on Friday so hopefully I will have more information for myself and for my friends and family....and for work!

30 week OB appt

I had an appt yesterday with my OB. I had a follow-up ultrasound to check my placenta and make sure it had moved up which it does appear that it did because she couldn't see it. BUT while doing the ultrasound and taking standard measurements they discovered that my amniotic fluid is low! There are 2 categories of people that this happens to, either you are leaking or there is no apparent reason. Naturally I fall under the 2nd category of there is no apparent reason. So my orders for the weekend was to take it easy and relax, laying on my side quite a bit and drink lots of fluids. I have to go back in on Tues the 29th for an ultrasound to check the fluid level and then do a non-stress test. If the fluid continues to stay low, then I will have to go in for an ultrasound once a week and a non-stress test twice a week. Fun stuff! As long as I don't have to go on bed rest! I am getting to the point where it feels like if it isn't one thing it's another. It seems as though with every ultrasound they find that the previous concern is no longer but there is now a new concern. So let's hope this is it for concerns for the rest of the pregnancy.

Oh yeah and there are no pictures this time...they didn't even give me any because it was just a quick one. I can't imagine they will give me any more pictures with the others that I will be getting. But I do have to say thank God for health insurance! I don't know how we would swing this without!

#4 finally has a name!

We finally decided on a name for the baby. Keep in mind that there's still 73 days left so we could still change our minds (has been known to happen in the past) but this is what we have decided on now. We are going to name her.....Hailey Sophia.

And for those of you who insist on seeing a belly picture here is one finally! The picture looks grainy....it was on some strange setting but it still shows you the size! :)

Latest Ultrasound

Am playing catch up here with posts so forgive me....

I had my latest ultrasound on Tues the 1st to check the growth of the baby as previously discussed. The baby has caught up and is now measuring on time or ahead (which isn't unusual for me) of schedule. However they did discover that I have an extra placental lobe which is called Succenturiate Anterior Lobe. It basically means that there is an extra placenta (small) in the anterior (front) of the placenta. This lobe is apparently dipping quite low right now so I will have to go back for another ultrasound to check its location in 3 weeks. I didn't do a link to what this is called because I made the mistake of doing research online and there is some REALLY SCARY info out there and then there is info more like I got from my doctor. She is not worried at this point. The doctors merely need to know so they can make sure that I deliver all of the placenta after I have the baby since it isn't good for the body to hold on to foreign matter! :) So since she isn't worried, I am not worried. I didn't ask many questions on the part of it being low yet because she seemed pretty confident that it would probably move (which is VERY common).

And I didn't share pictures this time because she (the baby) has a mind of her own and doesn't want us to see anything but her head and body! She was showing her face right when the tech put the thing to my belly but quickly ran away!

It's a girl!

We had our big ultrasound this morning and found out we are having a girl! We are all excited now that we are over the initial shock of ANOTHER female in this house. Poor JR and Eli are really out numbered now! But that also makes Eli that much more special since he is the only boy in the family. I only got a couple of pictures of her because she wasn't in the mood to show her face apparently. But each picture is labeled for those of you who don't understand what they are seeing! :) And to those of you that are wondering, no we don't have a name picked out yet! We had put the discussion on hold until we found out what we were having so we knew which way to focus. But Kayla and Eli did have plenty of suggestions tonight at dinner!

Otherwise everything is looking good. The baby is measuring a little small in the belly area which just means more ultrasounds to make sure she is growing OK. The doctor isn't really concerned with it at this point but worse case scenario is that they may have to induce me early because my placenta isn't allowing enough nutrition to the baby.

Halfway there!

I hit the halfway mark in this pregnancy a few days ago....and my how time is flying! 20 more weeks to go (give or take a few days since my babies tend to be comfortable and want to stick around in my belly)! I have my ultrasound and hopefully find out the sex of the baby on March 5th. So everyone start hoping and praying the baby shows the goods for us! :)

Kayla and Eli are still excited. I have been telling Emma there is a baby in my belly but she just doesn't get it and just wants to look at my belly. I still can't wait to see how she reacts. This is the first time we will have double the diapers and two small babies/toddlers together like this. Not bad considering this is the 4th! :)

I will get some belly pictures soon (just for you Cheryl) and post them on here. I still get told I don't look pregnant but I certainly feel it! And I have to wear the maternity pants now!

And last but not least, I have put a "link" off to the side to participate in my online baby pool to guess the sex, DOB and size. Have fun!

1st Ultrasound

I had my first ultrasound today to determine my due date. It was a quick check and I got a few pictures to go along with it. My due date is now set at July 3rd....so it was moved up a week. I took the 2 big kids along with me so they could see the baby and be a part of this whole thing. They thought it was super cool and really liked hearing the heart beat. So here are baby's first pictures....

Here we GROW again!

JR and I found out just after Christmas that we are expecting baby #4 on July 10th! Yes it was a huge surprise as were weren't trying...we were actually preventing or so we thought! My OB informed me that this happens to 1 in 100 women on the pill and I get to be one of the lucky ones! I have decided that God really didn't like my plan in life so he is taking it in to his own hands and I just have to deal with it! :) The kids are very excited and already cannot wait until the baby is born. I think Miss Emma is in for a rude awakening but in the end she will not even remember life before having a younger sibling. I go for an ultrasound next week so I will share pictures when I have some!