Friday, May 30, 2008

Shouldn't this have been my last?

This morning Jordan and I woke up anxious to attend what I consider should be my last doctor's appointment . . . the sun was shining, I was in a wonderful mood, I was very excited to hear about the progress the contractions I had earlier in the week had helped along, and I was just again in a great mood . . . then BAM! NO PROGRESS! My prediction from yesterday was confirmed, Eoin is staying put for the rest of my life. Dr. Weaver said I was definitely "softer" and "thinner" than last week, but no more dialation. She mentioned that my bones are small, but that shouldn't be a problem because she doesn't expect a very big baby . . . I read this as C-SECTION. Loud and clear . . . of course I am hoping and praying not for that to happen. Well, she asked for me to make an appointment for Tuesday and I will have an ultrasound at that point also. I left in tears. Jordan was irritated with me and asked me to stop as he was afraid people would think there was something wrong with the baby. I am thankful that there is not; so far there have been no complications with the baby or the pregnancy, however, I am finished. Done. I have 5 days until my due date and 4 days until my next doctor's appointment. All along people have mentioned that I probably wouldn't make it to my due date and silly me, believed everything I heard (I think you believe what you want to . . . if people kept mentioning that I was definitely going to go over, I wouldn't have heard a word, haha).



Regardless, just wanted to let everyone know that I am still pregnant and intend on being this way for awhile.



To Eoin: Mommy loves feeling you kick, it is the highlight of my days . . . however, it is so nice out here in the world. You are a very loved little boy already with lots of people anxiously awaiting your arrival; mommy and daddy are getting impatient so, no rush, but if you want to make your appearance soon, we would love to finally meet the little guy who has brought so much meaning to our lives already! Love you.

Thursday, May 29, 2008

HEADLINE: WOMAN ETERNALLY PREGNANT

6 days left until my due date and I really feel like I am going to be pregnant forever. I know this has never occurred before, but I believe that I may be a strong contender for the first person it ever happens to . . . I'll be 68 years old, and I'll be so mad that I haven't enjoyed sushi or a margarita in 43 years. My hair will be long and thick though, so at least I will have something positive to take from it!

I have had strong contractions this week; Saturday night we missed out on the fun of John and Tara's wedding because I was not feeling well . . . actually I was very anxious because I thought I was going to deliver a baby. I was sitting in bed timing my strong contractions wondering if this was in fact the real thing . . . I ended up falling asleep and woke up to no more contractions; alas, still pregnant. I had my manager outing planned for Wednesday in Peoria. With it being planned for exactly one week prior to my due date, I had obviously a contingency plan in place in case of my absense. With Saturday's contractions I decided to stay back and made this decision with my boss on Sunday. Well, with no event of a birth on Tuesday I decided to go . . . Julie drove separately and was my escape car in case the situation called for it. Of course Tuesday night, I had some more cramping and strong contractions. I was at a movie with Lisa, Jessi and Kathy and decided that I would make it through the movie; I did and of course the contractions subsided! So here I am, lots of practice, but no true labor yet! Stay posted . . . if I don't have a baby soon, maybe I can do some talk shows or something?!

Friday, May 23, 2008

Ripe and Ready

The countdown is on in the form of days . . . only 12 more days until Baby Kohn's due date, and, I as the impatient mama I'm hoping that he doesn't make it quite that long. We are all finished with our birthing classes . . . I think we got a passing grade! The nursery is finished and just awaiting one more thing . . . a baby! We have the bassinet up, the swing up and Jordan is painting the house this weekend so it is more welcoming. We still do not have the carseat in my car, but that problem is being taken care of as I type. I also don't have my bag for the hospital packed, but this is something I am not fretting over as we are literally 1/2 a mile or a 10 minute waddle away from the hospital, so if I were to forget something, it wouldn't be a huge deal for someone to run home and grab it for me!

This morning Jordan and I went to the doctor's office for our 38 week appointment. Eoin is ripe and ready and we are just awaiting him signally us that he is coming out . . . I'm one centimeter dialated and Dr. Weaver was able to touch the baby's head. I asked what his heart rate was and it was 164 and thinking this was kinda high I mentioned it to Dr. Weaver. She proceeded to tell me that his heart rate would be expected to go up since his space was invaded and he was surprised by someone touching his head! Jordan's eyes were as big as a saucer! Dr. Weaver informed me not to go out of town as Eoin could arrive any time, but we still made an appointment for next Friday the 30th.

Eoin has definitely dropped into place and this I am very thankful for; not only because it means that his arrival is imminent, but also because with his dropping, my heartburn has subsided. Although my esophagus would have preferred this happen a long time ago, we are both nonetheless, very appreciative. I didn't even realize that I was somewhat heartburn free until Wednesday. I have been toting around a rather large container of Rolaids and realized Wednesday that I hadn't made a dash for my purse in a day or so . . . so although I feel like a Prilosec OTC commercial . . . I am currently 4 days heartburn free and this is a great feeling! I am beginning to have more symptoms of late pregnancy though . . . my feet and ankles are usually pretty swollen by the end of the day, although I continue to wear my wedding rings they are much tighter than normal and my back kills! I want to make it through this weekend before he comes, too many people are busy . . . we have Tara and John's wedding and lots to do around the house, Grandma Brown has a busy weekend at work, Grandma and Grandpa Kohn are visiting Ashley, Nick and Aidan in Iowa, Aunt Tina and Aunt Krystal are in Florida; and I really would like to make it through one more short week of work! (yes, I'm crazy) . . . well, stay tuned . . . he's comin' soon, ready or not!

Monday, May 19, 2008

Neglecting everything!

I have been neglecting everything. I am finally catching everyone up on my life and pregnancy during the last couple of weeks and I am going to try not to get so far behind again . . . shorter blogs are probably much easier to read anyway, huh?! Well, here goes . . .

Beginning right after I clicked on "publish post" on my last blog began a very exciting Saturday. Jordan was cleaning with his dad and so I was taking my time getting out of bed to begin my day . . . just laying in bed, playing on the computer, etc. Aspen was let outside awhile before and since it was a nice morning I left her outside to play. I heard a scurrying across the deck and figured that Aspen was chasing another squirrel until I heard barking. Aspen rarely barks! It was so vicious I hopped (as well as I possibly can "hop") out of bed and went to our kitchen door to find out what all the commotion was about. Aspen was nowhere to be seen, but I could hear barking loudly. I stepped outside and called for Aspen, she wouldn't come, but I figured out that the barking (and some other sort of noise) was coming from underneath our deck! I tried calling Jordan immediately and frequently and there was no answer (3 weeks from delivering his child and I can't get a hold of him! that's another story!). I called Jordan's mom to get another perspective of what was going . . . I ended up calling her several times due the fact that I saw blood after awhile of this obvious fight ensuing and then again after realizing that the blood that I saw actually belonged to Aspen! The fight continued until Jordan's mom and Jessi arrived . . . at this point I was up on top of our shed trying to lure Aspen away from whatever she was attacking, or whatever was attacking her . . . I couldn't tell at this point! Aspen ran to Lisa and Jessi when they arrived and I was able to get her inside . . . as it turns out she had cornered a ground hog! Animal control came to set a humane trap to catch it (it outsmarted animal control) and we took Aspen to the vet to be sure that she was okay. She received an antibiotic shot and updated her annual vaccines. All is well that ends well, but Aspen, the loving, friendly lab can be a vicious fighter if something is invading her yard . . she is so protective. On a side note, animal control, the vet and stopping the brutal attack was all handled by the women, we told the men all about it later . . . yep, could've been in labor . . .

To calm our nerves, well, mine especially, Lisa and I practiced a little retail therapy on Saturday afternoon. For Eoin's "coming home" outfit, we plan on using the same outfit that Jordan came home in; however, for those of you who do not know, Jordan was 2 months premature and so, as you can only imagine, he was a tiny little baby boy, so we are not sure if Eoin will be too big for Jordan's outfit or not. To be completely prepared Grandma Kohn purchased another adorable little outfit complete with a blanket for Eoin to come in only if plan 1 fails due to size. It is so cute and will make Eoin look very handsome whether he wears it home or a little later. I also got a gift from Grandma Kohn for my very first Mother's Day . . . a beautiful dress to wear for Eoin' Baptism . . . it is also my motivation to get back in shape by that point. I also want to wish a belated Mother's Day to all those mamas! I hope everyone had a beautifully peaceful day.

My little sister celebrated her 23rd birthday on May 12th! Happy Birthday, Kelly! Another birthday was also celebrated last week . . . Aidan Jo Segal finally arrived! She was born at 9:03pm on May 14th weighing 8lbs 11.5 oz. and measuring 20 1/2 inches. She is adorable with a full head of hair and a single dimple . . . check out Ashley's blog for pictures. http://www.thesegalfamily.blogspot.com/ I do have to mention that I haven't spoken to Ashley yet (I missed her call this weekend and will have to return it tonight!) but she looks fantastic! I cannot wait to see lil' Aidan in person. Seeing how cute she is makes me long for Eoin's arrival even moreso!

I had a doctor's appointment Friday morning and everything is still going well; his heartbeat is fine and I'm measuring right on track; however I have begun to dialate (2 pencil tips, so not much!) and Eoin has dropped significantly. I planned on walking this weekend to hopefully dialate more, but my energy was spent around the house. I did get to watch Lily on Saturday morning while Katie was at pilates and afterwards we had a short trip to the Farmer's Market, so I got a little walking in . . . Jordan and I (mostly Jordan of course) assembled the pack 'n play and the swing and moved our bedroom around slightly to accomodate the bassinet so Eoin can camp in with us for a while . . . we were able to create another little feeding area in our room, so I have a comfy chair in both his room and ours, although I'm sure many of those night time feedings will consist of me simply lifting him from the bassinet and feeding him right in my bed! Jordan did some yard work this weekend and I was able to be all my flower pots planted. Jordan and I spent sometime looking back at old pictures of the yard too and although we have a long ways to go, we have come a long way too!

Well, after planting flowers and basically just trying to get a lot accomplished, my back stiffens up very easily . . . I have to hobble to bathroom after I have been lying down for a while and I am a mess after being in the car for too long; it is rather humorous I'm sure to watch me trying to walk after these periods of time. Pregnancy heartburn is going to be the last thing I miss . . . for some reason it has hit so hard! I have to take the limit on Rolaids every day and drink Malox and drink milk and stay away from foods that might trigger it more than others! This is very difficult when even water is becoming difficult for me to take down! I'm obviously beginning to just get over this entire pregnancy, but if last night is any indication, I may not have too much longer to go . . .

I woke up many times last night with painful contractions. They felt like strong period cramps and each time I had one I would feel my stomach and it was ROCK hard. I would fall asleep in between them and therefore felt there was no sort of regularity in their frequency. I tried not to wake up Jordan, however, I wasn't very comfortable so my tossing, turning and groaning may have kept him awake for awhile! I'm thinking that Eoin might be coming soon . . . well, regardless of if he decides to come early or not his due date is only 16 days away and that really isn't that long!

Saturday, May 10, 2008

quick update

Last weekend our birthing class focused on all things baby, once baby finally arrives! We got to experiment with our car seat and making baby "burritos" (swaddling the baby). Jordan is convinced that he is much better at it than I am, so I think I will let him take over this task once Eoin arrives.

I have been feeling great most of the time and just get stiff when I have been sitting in one position for too long. This includes sleeping at night, I sort of roll out of bed each time I have a potty break (there are quite of few of these throughout the night!). Jordan has been traveling for work, so I have been spending quality time with Aspen and Reilly throughout the week. I miss Jordan but have been able to fill the time getting ready for Eoin and then the weekends have been devoted to spending time together!

Friday, May 2, 2008

Lots to share

Time has flown past week or so . . .

To begin, on Wednesday April 23rd, Jordan and I had the honor of meeting The Coach. That's right, folks, we got to meet Mr. Mike Ditka live and in person. We happen to be avid Chicago Bears fans and so this was definitely quite a treat. Ditka was the featured speaker for the annual Evening of Stars event which is a fundraiser for the American Red Cross of the Heartland. We were invited by my boss and since we were corporate sponsors, we got to go to a reception beforehand at which we received pictures and he even signed a little baby bib and hat for Eoin! He was a great speaker and had the audience in stitches laughing at several parts of the program and sweetly brought his grand-daugher, who attends ISU, as he date for the night. It was a great night!

This past weekend, April 27th, to be exact, I was lucky enough to have a 2nd baby shower. I was overwhelmed with all of the gifts from the 1st shower and this 2nd one was just as great. We received lots more clothes, socks and shoes (again, I'm a little jealous of the closet situation!), a swing, bumpo chair(s) with a tray, diaper champ(s), a video monitor, regular monitors, a jumperoo, a play gym, lullaby cd's, a humidifier, lots of toys and rattles, name letters for his nursery, a handmade quilt and pillow, diapers, feeding items and bottles, a thermometer, wash clothes and towels (really cutes ones!), some Chicago Bears attire and footwear, roller shades for the car, a baby bjorn carrier, some special blankets, a chair with his name embroidered, wooden blocks. We received a couple of duplicates, but what a great problem to have! We have absolutely no purchases to make before he gets here! We are all set and ready for Eoin to make his arrival, he is entering the world spoiled as can be! I also received a few gifts at the shower . . . I got a silver bracelet with mother, mere and madra stamped into the silver and some comfy jammies for after Eoin arrives. The shower was so great, the food was wonderful and we had great cake from Janet's (my favorite!). Jordan and I spend the afternoon finding places for all of Eoin's new stuff and I was exhausted by the time everything was put away.

Jordan has been out of town for work this week and arrives home today! I am excited, although I was successful in filling my evenings while he was gone. On Tuesday I went to see the movie Baby Mama with Katie; two preggos on bring your own bucket night . . . it was fun!! I am very sore today, however, because I think that I may be beginning to 'nest.' Last night I went a little crazy cleaning the house and although I feel rather accomplished and my fridge is sparkling, I am stiff today! I also had a doctor's appointment this morning. Two weeks ago when I made the appointment, I was told that they would "check" me today. I prepped myself for this, aka, shaved my legs, and no "check!" So apparently all my hard work was for nothing!!!!! My next appointment (they are now weekly) is Thursday and I will have a "check" and the strep test performed. We are really coming down to the wire and last few weeks. Also, we are waiting on the phone call from Ashley to let us know that Aidan is on her way . . . Ashley's due date is Thursday!