Welcome, Felix Robert Abts!!

It's amazing that approximately a half hour after my last post, at 2 pm, my water broke and my contractions started immediately. Actually, it wasn't clear what was happening, because I had just hopped out of the shower when my water broke. But just to be safe, we packed up the car and headed to the hospital. An hour later, I was already 3-4 (possibly up to 5) cm dilated, and by 6 pm, I was almost 9 cm. At that point, my contractions were coming hard and fast (every 2 minutes), and I had an epidural which was a blessing. Especially when the baby decided that it wanted to come out face up and I had a fair amount of continuing pressure/pain from back labor. After pushing for about 2 and a half hours, the delivery doctor pulled the baby out at 10:57 pm on July 12, 2009, and asked "Did you know you were having a boy?" And there he was.

Nick and I hadn't settled on a boy's name by the time we got to the hospital. Felix was Nick's choice (mine shall remain secret in the event we have another boy), and because I was so happy and felt lucky to have such a short (9 hour) first labor, I agreed it was a good choice of name. And thus, our son became Felix Robert. (We each have an uncle named Robert, but we mostly liked how the names flowed.)

Felix was active in the womb and showed no signs of being any different outside. According to Nick, he was rolling around the place while being measured and weighed (6 lbs, 4 oz, 18 inches).

We came home from the hospital yesterday afternoon, and it's being understandably challenging. Felix and I are trying to get the hang of breastfeeding, which is difficult when my milk hasn't come in yet, and he wanted to feed every hour without allowing much time between for sleeping or recovery. His doctor recommended some supplemental formula this afternoon, and that has helped to calm his feeding patterns and satisfy his hunger. He also has a touch of jaundice (being early and sustaining a nasty bruise on his head during delivery didn't help matters). Hopefully he will continue to thrive, especially as we all get to know each other better.

And because everyone's been waiting, pictures:

C'mon, Wiggle! (37/6)

[37 weeks, 6 days]

Thanks to everyone who attended our baby showers! Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures to post, but I should be getting some from my mom soon. A big Thank You goes out to Mom and Cassie, who put together the shower at Grandma Maxine's. We're all ready to go with our baby gear (again, thank you to all!). Now all we need is a baby to go with it!

I spent the last week with a pretty bad cold, and I think it's finally clearing up enough that I can breathe. (Learning infant CPR while barely able to breathe wasn't the greatest, but then again, I hope I never have to use that anyway.) Maybe that's all the baby is waiting for. Nick and I have started to try to give the baby the hint that, hey, today's a good day to be born! So far, however, no luck. :o) Wiggle's a little too comfortable in there, apparently. I have a hunch that our "any day now" will be in a few weeks and not today, as we'd like.

The weather's been helping me, though, not being as hot as it was a while ago. My feet are closer to normal shape, and it's easier to sleep at night. It's making these last few days/weeks be a bit more tolerable. My cold, however, has not helped, but that's getting better, too.Today has been pretty interesting already. There was a Native American speaker and dancer at Prairie, who gave us a tobacco blessing for the baby. Maybe our sprinkling the tobacco in the prairie outside and thinking happy, "soon!" thoughts will be all the impetus Wiggle needs.

T-minus One Month...? (35/6)

[35 weeks, 6 days]

We're under a month from our due date (but it's all up to Wiggle when he/she starts the Big Show). We're very excited, and more than a little nervous.

We had our first baby shower today, when the lovely folks at Prairie Unitarian Universalist Society threw us a small shower after the service today. And fittingly enough (since the discussion today was on "Summer Reads"), we got several books to read to Wiggle. We also got a big bag full of diapers* and several newborn outfits. We can't wait to put them all to good use.

We just have one more class to take (Infant CPR), then we will have all of the knowledge we need at our disposal.

Enjoy the pictures of the nursery!
*We're going to use a cloth diaper service (Mother Nature's Diapers), so please, no more disposable diapers. Thanks!

Wait for it.... (34/6)

[34 weeks, 6 days]

Nearly 5 weeks left to go (give or take...). This is just a teaser entry - yesterday, Nick and I had a maternity photo shoot. I hope to have shots to share soon! We took pictures in a nearby park/prairie, and then some Badger shots in our basement. Interesting question - is it possible to brainwash a fetus? I guess we'll find out! :o) In the meantime, please enjoy my latest belly shot.

Lots of Little Things (34/2)

[34 weeks, 2 days]

The frequency of the B-H contractions made me move up my doctor's appointment this week to Monday instead of tomorrow. I was checked out, and despite the frequency of contractions, Wiggle doesn't appear to be in any hurry to make his or her appearance. No dialation, all good. The doctor did say to cut down on things that seem to trigger contractions. So far, that's walking, sitting, lying down, getting up, doing Kegels, and drinking water. This may be trickier than I expected...

If Wiggle can wait until after July 5th, I'd be much obliged. With my showers at the end of the month/beginning of the next and our daycare spot available in October, the more ripening the kid can do in there, the better. Plus, I reach term on the 6th, so that would be good, too.

On the Wiggle front, Wiggle has a foot and has a favorite spot to push it against. If you see me suddenly make an "argh!" face, that's probably why. It makes me wonder what the other foot is up to. Wiggle will also be the most hiccupy baby on the block, getting them up to several times a day. And finally, unless Nick and I can come to an agreement on a name if Wiggle is a boy, we may just be putting "Wiggle" on the birth certificate. ;o)

We got together with my Uncle Steve and Aunt Lori last night who are also expecting their first child (a boy due in October). They told some stories that made me very glad I'm living in the sane(r) Midwest. (Scheduled C-section complete with tummy tuck? Egads.) We compared experiences so far, and our view about the labor and delivery. It was really nice to talk with them, especially since so few of our friends and family have been pregnant in the past few years.

I have my own view of the nesting instict now. I understand that after the baby is born, we're going to have no time to do anything around the house for the first few weeks, so anything that's been bugging me, I should take care of NOW. That meant repainting the bathroom because my previous paint job annoyed me and put up a new light fixture and towel bar and adding cabinet shelving, dealing with the old paint cans in the basement, taking most of the tools out of the case and hanging them on the pegboard, and making space for bottles/formula (just in case)/baby items/etc. in the kitchen cabinets and pantry. All this past weekend. So far, I haven't gone "must clean under the sink!" crazy, but that still may be coming (though one may argue that doing all of that over one weekend qualifies as crazy). I'm fighting a serious urge right now to go to IKEA and buy storage items like trays and boxes.

As things get closer and the excitement increases, hopefully I can shake the fatigue I'm feeling and try to post more regularly. :o)

Maybe not so ready... (33/6)

[33 weeks, 6 days]
We're starting to get a good understanding of what's going on during labor and afterward. We took a breastfeeding class on Thursday and had our childbirth education class yesterday. It's going to suck, but at least we found some ways to help manage the pain. Inhale-hee inhale-hee inhale-hoo. That should do the trick.

Last night, I started to get a bit concerned that Wiggle is going to come much earlier than expected, with many contractions (most likely Braxton-Hicks). At least so far there's no other signs of labor, but the contractions are starting to get fairly annoying. Good thing that a) we're going to take a hospital tour this afternoon and b) I've got another doctor's appointment this week and will be able to ask about it then.

Wiggle and I must have had a growth spurt in the last week, because suddenly I've had more people commenting on my size/state in pregnancy. Yes, I am a blimp, thank you for noticing. I'm hoping to join the Goodyear fleet soon. :o)

Perfect (32/2)

[32 weeks, 2 days]

I just had my 32 week appointment at the doctor this afternoon, and I'm measuring up beautifully (32 cm). Of course, that also means that I'm measuring up pretty huge (by comparison to what I was). Wiggle is definitely getting bigger and living up to its nickname. Last night, Nick put his ear on my belly to hear the baby's heartbeat and was rewarded with both the sound and a kick right to the ear. I have a hunch that, boy or girl, this baby will be a handful. :o)

June will also be a very busy month for us - prenatal classes, appointments, a hospital tour, and maternity photos later in the month. Stay tuned!