Big Belly!

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas filled with many blessings. Ours was relaxing and just right.
I had another weekly check up on Monday to see what was going on with the baby and me. My mom and sister were in town, so they were able to go and see the sonogram. The tech said that her guess was that the baby was 8 lbs 6 ozs. After the sonogram, I saw my Dr. The report from his exam is that I am not dilated at all, but that is normal with a first pregnancy at 36 weeks. Also, he said he thinks the baby is only at 7 lbs 10 ozs. This is quite a relief, but he said to still expect and 8 and a half to 9 pounder! In addition, he explained why the sonograms can be so far off. Something about the fact that the measurements that are used to determine size are based off of sonograms in Denver. Becuase there is less oxygen there, it throws off the measurments here. Weird, and I don't quite understand that, but I will take it!
He also said that his estimates are typically within 4 ozs of being correct!

Several of you have asked to see some belly shots, so I will start out with the first one I took and go from there. Please dont look at ME in the last one, just the belly. We took that one when I was already nice and comfy at home....hence the lack of make up and funny hair...
And yes, I know I went 10 whole weeks without taking a picture. I had sworn off having my photo taken for a while.



15 weeks 3 days





18 weeks





22 weeks






32 weeks






36 weeks 3 days

5 Weeks and Counting!

Since my last post I have done quite a bit of work! I met with the last 2 pediatricians on my list, and have decided that I will go with the first one I met with. It was a hard decision because I REALLY like all 3 of them. When it came down to it, we had to go with the Dr that would follow the vaccination schedule that we prefer. An added benefit is that she happens to be the closest Dr to us.
Also, I have finished all but one load of baby laundry (thanks Mom and Abi for your help) and we have the nursery ready to go. Eron's mom bought our mattress for us..THANK YOU, Sunni, so now all we need is the baby to complete the room.

At my prenatal check up yesterday the sono tech said that Baby Linn has reached 8 pounds. I find this hard to believe, but that is what she told me. I know that these technicians can be off by up to a pound or pound and a half either way, but I still have 5 weeks for this baby to grow. Even if she is off, that is still big. The Dr looked at me yesterday and said, "I think we can get you at less than 12." 12.....12 POUNDS!!!! I hope that he was kidding. I am not sure though. I wish someone had been there to see the look on my face. I will love this baby regardless, but I have to admit I am a little afraid of delivery.
Also, the sono tech showed me that the baby has lots of hair. Yay!!! That makes me happy for some reason. I think babies that have hair are hilarious. I don't really know why. Maybe because it just doesn't seem to fit that a baby would have hair...
That is pretty much all for now on the baby updates.

I did want to let everyone know that we had to put my sweet kitty, Chico to sleep on Saturday. It was terribly sad and I have been so sad about it that I have not told anyone except my mom, dad, and sister. It is too hard for me to talk about. I miss him and look for him all the time still, but I know that he is not suffering anymore, and that makes me feel a little bit better. I added another picture of him that was taken before he got sick.


I probably won't post again before Christmas, so I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas.

Baby L Updates

Well, yesterday I interviewed with the first pediatricain on my list of 3. I was not so sure if I would like her at first, but after meeting with her, she is GREAT! She was fine with the vaccination schedule we would like to follow (which is pretty hard to come by) and she has no problems with whatever sleep/feed schedule works best for mom and baby (as long as baby is healthy, of course). There were many other things I liked about her, but these two factors were key. I will still interview the other two and make a final decision next week.

After the pediatricain interview, I went for my prenatal appointment. Baby L is at an estimated 6 pounds, 7 ounces!!! And we still have 6 and a half weeks to go. Even though my Dr is not yet ready to talk to me about inducing early (I had to see his associate yesterday, my Dr. is in the Holy Land), the sonogram tech in his office said he will likely want to induce mid January. Until yesterday I have been hoping that I will just go into labor naturally, but the prospect of delivering a 10 pound baby has me re-thinking things a bit. I think I would be fine being induced early. According to the sonogram report, (I can't remember the technical name)Baby L is an 8 out of 8 on the scale of health, so great news!!!

I mestioned that my Dr. is out of the office on a trip. Let me just say that I have known for quite some time how lucky I am to have found such a great Dr, but yesterday really proved it! He is thorough, takes time with his patients, sensitive to questions and concerns, and NEVER makes you feel like he is in a huge hurry to his next appointment, even if you know he is in the middle of delivering 3 babies and running back and forth from the hospital to his office. Also, anytime I mention to people in the medical community who my Dr. is, they go on and on about how great he is. Good sign. So yesterday, meeting with his associate was just different. Even the nurse staff seemed aloof and like I was just a number. Not to say the sub Dr was not nice, and I do think he is a good Dr, he just did not seem to take an interest in the 2 things I wanted to ask him about, or in making sure I was comfortable with everything. My Dr always asks what questions I have. This one did not. I had to tell him that I needed to ask him somehting. I think he spent a total of 5-7 minutes with me. And maybe this is the standard for most Drs, but definitly not mine! Anyway, I try no to take for granted that I am sooooo fortunate to have the Dr. that I have! I am glad he will be back and I will get to see him next week.

Loss

Since a young child I have dealt with the loss of loved ones, which is something that many people do not experience until they are older.
It seems that no matter who it is or when it happens, though, it is the most difficult thing in the world to deal with.
This week I am dealing with loss on two different scales. The first is the loss of my best friends mother. Her mom got sick very suddenly last week, and went into ICU. One week and one day later, she passed away. She was only 55. I feel awful for my friend. I cannot imagine going through this time in my life without my mother. My friend has a one year old baby, and I cannot even think of how I would feel without my mom there to see my baby and be a part of my kids lives. Plus, I feel awful that I am to the point in my pregnancy that I am no longer allowed to travel, so I cannot go to Houston for the funeral. My mom and sister are going, so that makes me feel a little better.
The second loss I am dealing with is my precious kitty, Chico. He has a RARE cancer and I think we are finally to the point that he is no longer comfortable, and we have to put him to sleep.
He is only 8 and most cats live to be anywhere from 16-20 years old. Chico is the first pet I have ever had that is just mine. Not a family pet, but my own pet. I am so attached to him. I have already cried my eyes out over this kitty several times. He is my little buddy, and I cannot bear the thought of how I will be when he is no longer with me. I am so used to looking for him when I get home and cuddling with him and making him purr. His absence from my life will probably become reality before Friday. I am attaching a picture of my Sweet Chico.

On a more positive note (sorry this post has been such a bummer), I have another prenatal check-up tomorrow, so I will get to see my sweet baby on the sonogram again! I love seeing that sweet face, and even hearing about how large Baby L is. I will post an update after the appointment.
Please pray for my friend and for me as we deal with our losses.

Finally.....

So after reading SO MANY of my friends blogs on a regular basis, I have finally decided to start one of my own.


This is only a trial run, so I may end up never positing again!!!


I thought this might be a good way to let my family and friends from out of town keep up with us regularly!


Eron and I are expecting our first baby on January 24, 2009. I am 32.5 weeks pregnant, and the baby is HUGE!!!!
I am now required to get a sonogram every time I go to the Dr. (which is now once a week) to make sure that there is enough fluid for the baby to keep it healthy and nourished. I am on track to have a 9.5 to 10 pound baby!!! The Dr. says the baby is totally healthy, just LARGE.


We have decided to be surprised about the gender of the baby, so I will refer to him/her as Baby L until D Day...


I have included a picture of the sonogram we had at 28 weeks. Check out those Chubby Cheeks. I am already in love.