My Non-Birth Story

It's been an exciting and frustrating couple of days here. Thursday night as I was waiting for Ross to get home from work I began to feel an uncomfortable feeling of pressure. So much so that when we went out to Ihop for dinner (yay!) I couldn't even finish my country omelette (boo!) I thought maybe it was indigestion but it got worse throughout the night and I was constantly getting up to pace to try to work out the tension in my back and pelvis from all the pressure.

The next day I knew I had to distract myself or I'd go nuts so I went to Kohl's to buy myself a mother's day present (new purse!) It felt good to get out of the house and stretch my legs, but the pain in my back got worse and worse. I was still feeling a lot of pressure in my abdomen and couldn't finish my lunch. I went home, planning to rest my back, but found that it was even more uncomfortable to sit, so I did another round of cleaning around the apartment and by the end of that I noticed that I was definitely having menstrual type cramps. Around 8 o'clock I started to time them and they were about 10 minutes apart. By 10 they were about 7 minutes apart and getting stronger. By 11 they were 5 minutes apart, with a few breaks, and by midnight they had me doubled up in pain. I called the nurse on call with my practice and she said to go straight to the hospital.

Getting into the car to drive to the hospital I had my last really intense contraction of the night. I was still experiencing pain but not scary pain. When we arrived at Labor & Delivery I was already starting to feel a little more relaxed. They hooked me up to the monitor and right away could see that I was having contractions every 1.5 minutes, however I couldn't even feel most of these contractions, and I knew that was a bad sign. The nurse checked my cervix and found that I was exactly the same as I was on Tuesday - 1-2 cm dilated and 70-80% effaced. I knew at this point they were going to send me home and I felt so frustrated.

As we waited for the final word from the doctor I had some time to come to terms with the fact that we weren't going to be having the baby that night. I was sad about it, but I have to admit I was also glad at the prospect of going home, because even with the lighter contractions, I was super uncomfortable in the hospital bed. When the nurse came back she explained that I was experiencing Prodromal Labor, which is labor that does not progress. She said the doctor had ordered that I go home and get some rest, and come back when the contractions were more painful. With the release orders she gave me a shot of demerol, to ease the pain and help me get some sleep.

I was worried that the Demerol would stop the contractions and further reduce any chances I had of going into active labor, but I noticed, when the drug kicked in, that I could still feel the contractions, just without so much discomfort. By the time we got home from the hospital I was slurring my words a little and feeling rather chipper :P Ross and I ate a quick breakfast and around 4 o'clock finally went to bed for the night.

I was awoken three or four times by strong contractions but they never seemed to get closer together. By mid-morning the pain was getting less and less. I felt sad that I wasn't going into active labor, but thankful that the prodromal labor was ending, because I know for some people it goes on for days.

Now it's evening here and it looks like it will be a much calmer and more relaxed night than last night. I'm sipping red tea and Ross is loading up the newest episode of Doctor Who. Maybe we'll run out and get some frozen yogurt later. Not as good as having a baby, but not too shabby either.

I'm too busy waging psychological war on my body to compose a coherent post so here's another listy sort of one made of random observations and mundane details of my life. Lucky you!

• Temps have gotten up to 90 this week and it's amazing how different 90 feels here. I can actually sit out on the balcony comfortably. The humidity is something ridiculously low like 7%.
• Lost was epic last night. Maybe a little too epic? Thought Matthew Fox was on his a-game but not sure if the directing lived up to the content...
• Doctor Who, on the other hand, knocked it out of the friggin ball park. Why, oh why, are their season's so short? I just can't get enough of that show.
  
• Ross and I have begun seeing lizards sunning themselves around the apartment complex. I still can't believe I live somewhere with palm trees, tumbleweeds, and lizards!
  
• Remy is getting big and heavy and I'm getting very tired!
  
• My 39 week appointment went great. I'm progressing and the young doctor I was a little worried about is no longer with the practice. Oh, and my weight is holding steady, which seems sort of miraculous.
  
• There is a restaurant chain here called Cafe Rio and they have the most amazing pork barbecoa and I'm hoping Ross will take me there tonight to celebrate Cinco de Mayo.
  

Love this Blog!

A fb friend posted a link to this blog last week and I am totally in love with it. Soooo funny. If you need a good laugh, check out Rants from Mommyland.

Saturday

Time for a random list.

• Feeling icky for the second straight day. Could mean I'm gonna have a baby, but probably means indigestion.
• Piper is SO in love with me that it's getting quite annoying. I'm constantly clawing static-y cat hair off my face and out of my mouth.
• Ross and I are both wondering how he is going to handle sleep deprivation. If you know Ross, you know what I'm talking about. Should be interesting.
• Feels like half the women in my May Expecting Club have already had their babies and it's only May 1st. It's not fair.
• My doctor is out of town this week, which means I may not have to deliver with the youngest OB ever. Yay!
• Gonna try to do some walking today because when I did it yesterday it kinda hurt, but it also kinda felt right, ya know?
  

TGIF

Feeling a little less down today, mostly thanks to a lot of twinges and aches in the midsection last night. Nothing pulls me out of my pity party like the feeling that my body is up to something.

It's a gorgeous day in Vegas. Cold by the locals standards but I think it's refreshing. And the mountains always look better on a cool day - closer, and craggier. Cool weather is also better for driving in since the Yukon doesn't have AC yet. Maybe I'll head over to Kohls to walk around and fantasize about wearing normal people clothes...

As much as I gripe about the wait, time really is flying. I can't believe another work week has come and gone! Tomorrow I'll be 39 weeks! This really is gonna happen!

Venting

I would like to finish this race well - with grace and a sense of humor - but I feel like I might as well be wishing for a bikini body and a million bucks. I'm tired and grumpy and feeling a little rejected by Remy's apparent determination not to be born. I stroke my belly and tell him that he will like it out here, with the cats and the sunshine and his funny daddy, but I don't think he is convinced.

I am also pissed at my body for constantly getting my hopes up with, of all things, pain, only to have the pains disappear once I have cleaned the kitchen from top to bottom, packed and repacked my hospital bag and thrown fresh litter in the litter box.

I'm also starting to get nervous about labor. Not enough to keep me up at night (I have other issues that do that!) but enough to make me seriously question my birth plan.

Piper, on the other hand, is loving this stage. She stays close to me all day long, and has even started sleeping in our bed again at night. She licks my hands and fingers with sloppy wet kisses and if my hands aren't immediately available she starts licking the laptop I am sitting at. She purrs A LOT and gazes at me lovingly, which is disconcerting coming from someone whose look is usually one of superiority or accusation.

I have things that I meant to do to keep me busy, like drive to the mall or swim in the pool, but my energy just isn't there. (Plus, I can't reach the pedals in the Yukon without having my belly pressed against the steering wheel and it doesn't seem like a very safe way to drive!) So I take naps and baths, check fb endlessly, snack until I feel disgusted with myself, and listen to bad eighties music on the radio.

Saturday I will be 39 weeks. So technically it is really no biggy that I haven't gone into labor yet. But if I don't have the baby next week I fear I will turn into a complete basket case!

What Ross is Working On!

It is a MMORTS and it looks pretty cool! If you are into that sort of thing, check out the website here.

Belly Pictures (The Last?)

We're running out of time to document the belly, so today we got out Ross's camera and the tripod and took some photos!

Killing Time

There is a baby coming and it could be tomorrow, or it could be a month from now. That is a frustratingly large margin of time! Here are some things I'm doing to fill the hours.

• Charging the electronics.
• Baking.
• Reading in short bursts.
  
• Light exercises on my exercise ball.
• Packing and repacking my hospital bag.
• Eating too much.
• Taking long, relaxing baths.
• Swimming.
• Reading birth stories online.
• Doing all the laundry I can get my hands on.
• Watching Destination Truth on YouTube.
• Napping.
• Trying to keep the floors clean.
• Counting down the days 'til Doctor Who, then DWTS, then Lost.
  
• Pulling up my shirt and watching mysterious baby undulations.
• Making lots of lists.

And people say it's a superfluous device...

36 Weeks Pregnant (And Kinda Grumpy)

I had a less than inspiring OB appointment today. It was with a nurse practitioner (and not the one I met with last week, a new one.) She didn't know anything about the ultrasound Dr. Carter said I should get this week, so she put in an order for one and I should hear from them soon.

One of the reasons I was really looking forward to the u/s is because I've been worried about Remy's position. I've tried "belly mapping" with no luck. So I asked the nurse to check for me.

She started palpating my belly and after a minute said he seemed to be head down. Then she got out the doppler, but she found his heartbeat where she didn't expect it to be. So she palpated my belly again and then tried the doppler on the other side, and found the heartbeat there as well. "Do you have two in there?" she asked. Like I was keeping it a secret so I could surprise everyone on the big day! "No, should just be the one." So she switched back to the other side and decided it sounded more authentic and the other one was simply the echo. She thought about it for another minute and decided that he is probably not head down, but rather diagonal. Yup, that sounds like my guy. Come on Remy, give your mama a break and get your head down where it's supposed to be!

During all this she informed me I was having a contraction. I couldn't feel it but I think I've had several more this afternoon. Thank you, uterus, keep up the good work.

Still have no idea if I've started to dilate yet, but next week I'll meet with Dr. Carter again and maybe we'll check then.

Pregnancy Woes of Late

• burst capillaries all over my legs
• constantly hot and sweaty

• getting ridiculously bad sleep
• hungry all the time and too tired to cook
  
• have fallen off the no-caffeine wagon
• too tired to read
• lots of new stretch marks on my belly
  
• soooo bored

Yay God

• I like it when Remy sticks out his bum or his heels and I can rub them!
• We ordered a super-comfy looking glider and it should be here by the end of the month.
• Lost and Doctor Who have been awesome, and provide much needed distraction.
• Well stocked with baby stuff.
• Mom and Steph will be here next month!
• Remy will be here next month!
  

Red Rock Canyon

Sunday afternoon we finally made it out to Red Rock Canyon! Amazing to see such beauty and wilderness just 30 minutes from our apartment! We bought a year long pass so that we can bring all of our family friends when the visit. Sunday we just did the drive and got out at a few of the lookout stations but after Remy is born we plan to go back for a picnic, and maybe by fall we'll be ready to do a little hiking!

That's a walking path snaking along in the bottom of the picture.

Giant, water-filled cave!

Windy day :)