Buddy watch

Buddy watch is on, folks. After a trip to the doctor this morning, I'm a little over 2 cm dialated and 70-80% effaced. The greatest part is that I'm having contractions pretty often, just not regularly enough yet. Buddy's on his way! Perhaps his cousin's arrival did give him some good ideas after all. :)

It could be tonight...it could be two days from now, but things are definitely progressing. So, today I plan to bake some cookies, put my feet up and record the frequency of the contractions. If he's not here by dinner, a walk will be in order. :)

Patience is a Virtue - a post by Stephen

If you know me at all, you know that I was not blessed with an overabundance of patience. I probably wasn't even blessed with an average amount of patience. However, as I reflect back on the past 9 months, with respect to Buddy's arrival, I actually think I have been unusually patient. I have been enjoying Carrie and I's final months as DINC's. I've relished the Saturday mornings when I can get up on my own schedule, put on a pot of coffee, read the paper at will, maybe pimp out my ride in the driveway and watch some college football. I've enjoyed calling up a friend or family member on a random weekday night and going out for wings and a brew. I am smart enough to know those days will be long gone in a week or two.

So I've been patient.

But I will admit that this last week or week and a half has been a little excruciating. And the thought of Carrie going past her due date by a week or more only makes it tougher. If I am finding it hard to concentrate now, I really don't want to think about my mental state next week if I am still trekking into work and waiting on the little guy's arrival. People have been asking about my nerves. And frankly, I'm not nervous at all. There is a very good chance that once Carrie gives me the official nod and I find myself sitting in a hospital room, the butterflies may start flying around. But for now, the nerves are calm. The patience is wearing thin.

Hospital trip

Today, I made a quick trip to the hospital. No, not for me, unfortunately -- but rather, to welcome my new niece, Autumn Kate Meyer -- 7 lbs, 3 oz, 20 inches long at 10:51 a.m. Mom, dad and baby are doing fabulous.

It was pretty amazing to have a chance to see everything from the other side one more time -- being in the waiting room, watching her go through all her measurements, tests and bath in the nursery, and holding that precious, fresh little bundle -- what a miracle.

Hopefully buddy will take some cues from his new cousin and hurry up!

Warm and comfy

Buddy must be really warm and comfy...because in the last two weeks, he hasn't helped his mommy progress any towards labor. I'm still about 60% effaced, and between 1 and 2 cm dialated.

For those in the office baby pool, here's a tip. Dr. Chris today said that if he had to guess, he'd say that our little guy is going to hang out until around the due date, and that based on my current measurements, he'll be "average sized," meaning between 7.5 and 8.5 lbs.

The most surprising news of the doctor's office visit today was my total weight gain. I'd forgotten where I started, and hadn't been paying much attention to the scale lately. I asked the medical assistant today to remind me of my starting weight, and scarily, some fast math helped me realize that I've gained 46 lbs so far. Yep, 46.

Stephen's been great at reassuring me that I haven't become a huge, scarily bloated pregnant person, but I'm starting to think that the facts contradict his kindness. Not much I can do now, except take long walks, eat spicy food and pray for this little guy to be ready soon.

Perfect timing

We must be close to buddy's arrival because I had my last day at the office on Friday. It was a very weird day...and I think it's going to be even more odd tomorrow a.m. when I wake up and don't carpool with Stephen downtown. As unnatural as it will be to stay home and wait these next few weeks, it was perfect timing to slow things down.

How do I know this? Saturday night, after running errands during the day with my mom and then going out to a nice dinner with Stephen, I came home, changed into comfy clothes and sat on the couch. I put my feet up on the couch and started to watch TV. Stephen looked over at me and uttered something like "whoa - look at your ankles."

What he should have said is "whoa - you've got a mean case of the cankles." I looked down to see my left ankle and foot slightly swollen, and my right ankle looked like it was broken it was so puffy.

So, that's one more late pregnancy symptom that's becoming a reality during these last few days and weeks. I'm grateful I decided to stop working now, b/c I'm needing to take more frequent breaks and keep my feet elevated if I'm not actively doing something. And while my office is pretty casual, I'm not sure how they'd take to slippers and feet up on the desk all day long. :)