I always love reading about people's pregnancy/delivery experiences and there are a few things I want to remember about this pregnancy later.
*Disclaimer* I wrote this post in chunks through out my pregnancy so if it doesn't have a smooth flow, it's because I didn't reread what I had previously written before continuing on with my experience.
I was aiming for a due date around the same time as my birthday because I thought it would be fun to share a birthday with my baby since Jason already shared a birthday with the twins. And spring is the perfect time (in my opinion) to have a baby because you are super pregnant in the cooler months and the baby is older before RSV season arrives.
Even before we got pregnant we were convinced this baby was a girl. I just felt like Tessa needed a sister since she is so girly and is drawn to the other girls in the neighborhood. The twins will always have each other and I thought it would be perfect to give Tessa a best friend sister like I had growing up. So even before conception when talking about this baby, it was always a "she". There was no doubt in my mind and I had been correct my last two pregnancies.
We got pregnant on the first try and found out the baby's estimated due date is April 1st. I am NOT going two weeks past my due date just to have a shared birthday.
I went in at about 8 weeks pregnant because I wasn't entirely sure how far along I was. (My period was a little inconsistent after having my IUD removed). They confirmed my estimated due date and confirmed that I was indeed pregnant. (Always a relief to actually see the baby.)
I had another appointment at 11 weeks due to a receptionist scheduling error (She scheduled me 3 weeks out instead of 4) and since it was still so early in the pregnancy they decided to check on the baby via ultrasound. I wasn't going to complain. I love any excuse for an ultrasound! Even at this young gestational age the doctor commented how active and wiggly the baby was.
I had debated taking the DNA blood test to find the gender out early since it was 99% accurate and the suspense would have ended quickly. But since it is still a relatively new test it is not generally covered under insurance so we opted to not take it and just be patient.
At 16 weeks I went in for a gender reveal ultrasound. We saw this adorable baby waving at us and being VERY active again.
Right away the Ultrasound tech was able to tell the gender and imagine my surprise when we found out it was a boy! I had been so convinced it was going to be a girl that I honestly had to hold back tears while she finished up the ultrasound because I couldn't believe it. Everything I had planned for and envisioned changed. Luckily the ultrasound was purely to find out the gender so we were able to leave quickly and sit in the car for a while to wrap our heads around this change in events.
Even while I was in the middle of mourning the loss of the girl I was never going to have (knowing this was our last pregnancy) I KNEW that it was going to be great and that this was God's plan for us and a boy was evidently exactly what we needed to complete our family. I just had to have time to wrap my head around the idea. I was really emotional the rest of the day and even for a week after finding out.
I know this sounds silly because we were still going to have a healthy baby and everything was going smoothly, but it really felt like we had lost something and I needed time to mourn. I was even in a little bit of denial that it was actually a boy and looked up the chances that the ultrasound tech was wrong. Apparently it DOES happen sometimes when the umbilical cord is in between the legs or even a finger. So for about a month after finding out I still wasn't 100% convinced it was a boy. But either way, look at how cute this baby is!
The first trimester was TERRIBLE! Even though I only threw up a handful of times, I was CONSTANTLY feeling nauseous and it didn't seem to matter what I did. The baby also refused to let me eat any kind of sugar for about the first four months. When I did try to sneak sugar, I would feel super sick and my stomach would hurt. So that was a bummer but actually wasn't a totally bad thing because it did keep me healthy. I only gained about 4 or 5 pounds the first half of my pregnancy. My mom joked that this baby must be an athlete because he liked to eat healthy and is constantly on the move. I guess only time will tell. :)
We decided to tell the kids that was I was pregnant after church on the Sunday right before Halloween so they wouldn't tell everyone in the ward before we had a chance to tell Jason's family. (I thought it would be fun to see how long we could wait to tell people and my goal was until after we knew the gender.)
The Webres have a family Halloween party every year and this year's theme was "On the Farm". Everyone was going to be there including Jill's family so I thought it was a perfect time to announce in person. I came up with the idea to have my kids dress up as vegetables and put a sprout on my belly. When we walked into G&G Webres' house I just removed my coat and everyone noticed my belly. We then told them how far along I was and let them know we were having another boy. It was fairly low key, which is the way I like it. I am not a fan of being the center of attention.
I asked Heather to snap a few pictures of the kids and my belly so I could announce on social media a few days later.
When I was about 19.5 weeks along, Tessa woke me up in the middle of the night and I realized my sheets were pretty damp. I started freaking out thinking that my water had broken since the dampness seemed to be only around my bum. I smelled it to make sure it wasn't pee and it was odorless, from what I could tell. I stayed up for a couple hours after that looking up what would happen if my water HAD broken and the likelihood of the baby surviving. The next day I couldn't shake the feeling that something might be wrong so I called my OBGYN's office and spoke with a nurse. She didn't THINK my water had broken but advised me to head to Labor and Delivery at the hospital to make sure.
Luckily the boys had preschool that afternoon so as soon as I dropped them off, Tessa and I headed to American Fork. I called my neighbor on the way and asked if she could pick the boys up from preschool if I didn't make it back in time.
When we got to the hospital L&D turned me away because I wasn't 20 weeks along yet. I was only shy 3 days! I was already emotional so that didn't help knowing they didn't feel like my baby was worth their time. They told me to go to the ER instead so Tessa and I headed back downstairs. The ER admitted me after commenting that it was a little strange L&D wouldn't see me since I was so close to their cut-off.
They took a blood sample, ultrasound to check my amniotic fluid level (which was normal and they also confirmed I was having a boy), and obtained a urine sample to test for a UTI. All of this took several hours.
Meanwhile, Tessa was a perfect angel watching shows and playing with her coloring book and stickers the hospital gave her.
She was pretty pleased with the apple juice provided as well.
After all their tests came back normal the doctor informed me that he didn't seem like my water had broken but I should follow up with my doctor within the next few days for a vaginal swab that would tell me for sure. The nurse wrapped up my arm and asked Tessa if she should use a pink bandage. Tessa exclaimed "I LOVE it!" so the nurse wrapped Tessa's arm too.
The next day I had an appointment with my OBGYN and he was shocked that #1 Labor and Delivery wouldn't see me just to give me the vaginal swab and that #2 when I was in the ER they didn't just run up to L&D to get a swab since that is all you need to check to see if any amniotic fluid is leaking. Basically my whole trip to the hospital was a VERY expensive waste of time. Luckily my doctor happened to have a swab on hand and did the test himself. All is well.
So, why did my bed feel damp in the first place? This is rather embarrassing but for the sake of record keeping, apparently my bum is very sweaty when I am pregnant. I have woken up to damp sheets numerous times since. I now know there is no cause for alarm.
A few days later I had my in-depth 20 week ultrasound. My mom and Gerry happened to be in town so they were able to join us for the ultrasound. It was a very crowded room with G&G, all three kids, Jason, me, and the ultrasound tech.
Third time an ultrasound has confirmed I am having a boy. I have gotten to the point where I am actually super excited to meet the little guy and Tessa reminds me frequently why it's good that she is the only girl (Little Miss Drama Pants).
We have picked out a name already which has made it more real and exciting. We are not sharing the name until he is born because I feel like it is fun to introduce the name when we introduce the baby. Plus I want to wait until he is born to know for sure. The kids call him by name now so it is possible that the name will slip out beforehand, but I have explained that it is a surprise so they shouldn't tell anyone. We will see how well that goes... haha.
His cute little legs. :) The ultrasound tech said he is growing perfectly and everything looks great. So now we just wait for him to grow big and strong enough to come out.
Right before Thanksgiving the baby decided it was okay for me to eat select treats. He still doesn't like cinnamon rolls, sugar cookies, etc. BUT I am able to eat my all-time favorite ice cream: Tillamook Mudslide.
At 22 weeks I decided it was time to start recording my belly growing.
22 Weeks
All of the kids adore the baby already. It melts my heart. Anytime my belly is exposed they all flock to it instantly so they can talk to the baby and feel him move. Cooper will randomly hug and rub my belly through out the day.
One day Tessa asked to hear the baby heart "beep".
Tessa is so excited to be a big sister. She loves that she will be sharing her room with the baby. Here is a video of her talking about everything she is going to do for the baby.
24 Weeks
25 Weeks
26 Weeks
Twins, Tessa, Baby #4 (in that order) all at 26 weeks
This flu season has been THE WORST for the whole country. Luckily my family hasn't gotten the flu yet (*knock on wood*) but we did all get some colds that seemed to last forever. I was congested and coughing for at least two weeks straight. My stomach hurt from all the ab work nose blowing and coughing had caused. I am convinced that because of this, the baby got pushed down super low. I could feel the pelvic pressure and was rather uncomfortable.
Because the baby was so low, as soon as I hit my third trimester I had horrible sciatic pain that would radiate down my right leg and often my left leg too for two days straight. I have never experienced sciatic pain before with my previous pregnancies so I sincerely thought I was going to have to deal with it for the rest of my pregnancy and it brought me to tears thinking about it. It hurt SO BAD. On top of that, every time I stood or sneezed or anything I would pee a little. I had zero control of my bladder. It was so annoying and embarrassing. When I talked to my doctor about it she just told me that was too bad but it should get better after I gave birth. Fantastic. Three months of intense pain and peeing my pants. Luckily, the baby must have moved up after a few days because the pain and peeing subsided.
29 Weeks
After I recovered from being sick and the pain subsided, my nesting instinct kicked in full force. I have never been bit by the nesting bug as bad as I have this pregnancy. I couldn't clean/organize/purge enough. I was so invigorated. I think part of that had to do with the fact that we are finishing another room in the basement and I get excited about home projects. So that combined with being in my third trimester, this house didn't stand a chance. It feels SO GOOD to get rid of stuff!
30 Weeks
I have been feeling contractions since about half way through my pregnancy but they are far less frequent than my previous pregnancies. I also think that this baby is trying to make up for the lack of sugar the first four months of pregnancy by making me crave sugar this last trimester. I still don't crave it as much as a normal person, but I definitely crave it more than normal. I cannot get enough of my favorite ice cream : Tillamook Mudslide. I also still love anything with cinnamon. I really need to brave making homemade cinnamon rolls sometime very soon. I think my main craving this pregnancy though is Texas Roadhouse Rolls with honey butter. I LOVE THEM!
33 Weeks
This baby has always been super active. They say that babies tend to calm down as they get bigger and there is less room for them to wiggle, but not this baby. It feels like Baby Boy is literally doing this in my stomach every day:
Don't believe me? Here is a sample of what I experience daily even at 34 weeks along:
I feel like this baby has so much personality already. He is a mover for SURE but he also doesn't like to be touched by anyone except me. If anyone else tries to put their hand on my stomach he stops moving immediately. It's crazy to me that he can tell a difference but he totally can. I am curious what that means. Perhaps he is shy? I don't know. At about 34 weeks he finally got used to Jason touching my belly and will still wiggle around for him. He has always responded better for Tessa and I swear he recognizes her voice. He will wiggle for her hand on my belly more frequently than the boys and gets excited when he hears her voice.
I have decided that he is also very perceptive and aware of his surroundings. He reacts to new noises and environments by either suddenly getting really active or still depending on the situation. He can feel the energy in Primary (I am first counselor Primary Presidency) and will almost always been super active during church as he hears the other kids. He also responses quickly when my adrenaline kicks in (whether excitement or frustration, etc.) and will start getting really active.
At about 34 weeks I hit a wall and I all of a sudden had no energy to clean or do much of anything else either. My nesting desire was still there but the energy was not. I would start cleaning/sorting and then feel the need to take a break just a few minutes into the project. My muscles also ache (especially my hips) when I try to sleep at night. So I don't get much sleep and often wake up sore. Luckily once I get moving I start to feel better.
At my 34 week check-up my doctor praised me for being exactly on track with my weight gain, blood pressure and belly size. He said I was the perfect example of how pregnancy should go. I mentioned to him that was good to hear because this was my first "normal" pregnancy. He was surprised so I explained to him I had twins my first pregnancy and Tessa had extra fluid so I was considered high risk both times and had a million ultrasounds. It was weird to me that I hadn't had any ultrasounds since Week 20. He said because a previous pregnancy had extra fluid he was going to order an ultrasound for my next appointment at Week 36 just to make sure I didn't have extra fluid again. To be honest, I thought he was just being super nice so I had an excuse to see the baby again. I wasn't going to say no to that! Although I doubted I had the extra fluid since I was measuring right on track. (With Tessa my belly was measuring large so they did an ultrasound to find out why and that is when they discovered I had extra fluid.)
35 Weeks
36 Week Stats:
70% Effaced
1 cm Dilated
Baby head down and weighing a little over 6.5 lbs
At my 36 week check up I went and saw the doctor first. (This was a different doctor than the previous appointment.) He commented that he really doubted I had extra fluid because if anything my belly was measuring slightly small but we would see what the ultrasound showed. I went in for my ultrasound and the tech measured my fluid levels and commented that I had plenty of fluid. When she added up the four quadrants she measured it indeed showed that I had extra fluid again! (The average amount of fluid is between 15-25 and I had a little over 27)
She also measured the baby to make sure he was growing properly and even though I am only 36 weeks along, his head width is measuring at 39 weeks! She remeasured several times because she didn't believe it. His head length is measuring only about a week a head of schedule so basically he has a football head. The rest of his body proportions are measuring within a normal range for his age. He just has a huge head. This isn't super surprising to me because all of my kids have had large heads. I am just not so sure I want to wait until 40 weeks to give birth if his head is already so big. Ouch!
The tech went to talk to the doctor to see what he wanted to do about the extra fluid. He said that they will not induce early unless the fluid level reaches 35 so I will just be monitored more closely now, which means I get another ultrasound next week. So much for a normal pregnancy! Ha.
37 Weeks
70% Effaced
2 cm Dilated
Baby head down weighing about 7 lbs 2 oz
He was super wiggly during this ultrasound and I think the office was running behind so we were only able to get one picture of him, but he sure has a cute profile. :)
For the 37 week appointment the baby's head was measuring more normal. As you can see in the chart below it is measuring not quite 39 weeks still even though it's a week later. And it is not measuring quite so football-shaped. The ultrasound tech last week was having a hard time getting a good measurement so I think that is why it came out seemingly disproportional and extra large. The baby is measuring about 3 days ahead of schedule (37 weeks 4 days instead of 37 weeks 1 day) so basically he is right on track. They said he is about 7 lbs 2 oz so if he goes until his induction date of April 2nd, he should be about an 8 pound baby.
My fluid is about the same as it was last week but a little less (26.69) so the doctor is not worried about it at all anymore. Especially since he is considered full term now and is safe to come out. So I will not need another ultrasound next week. My belly is measuring right on track, my blood pressure is great, and the heartbeat was good. So basically everything is running smoothly again.
Sarah's birthday is tomorrow so she is rooting for a birthday buddy. Since I haven't progressed too much from last week I don't have high hopes but it sure would be nice to be done being pregnant already. The doctor has said the baby is ready to come out now though so we will see tomorrow if she gets her wish.
38 Weeks
38 Week Stats:
70% Effaced
3 cm Dilated
Head down
Stripped Membranes
My 38 Week appointment went well. I was dilated a little more than I was the week before but still only 70% effaced. So I am progressing but not a ton. The doctor asked if I wanted my membranes stripped and since it totally threw me off guard I didn't know what to tell him. I would LOVE to have the baby come earlier than April 2nd but I also feel really good about that date. In the end I told him "sure". When he checked my cervix I didn't feel anything different so I am still not 100% sure if he actually stripped my membranes or not. I had no spotting afterwards or extra contractions or anything. So if he DID strip them, it did nothing to encourage labor.
But since I still feel very pregnant and would love to get this baby progressing some more, I decided to walk on the treadmill to see if I could walk him out. (It didn't work).
The kids have loved on this baby the entire pregnancy. They cannot wait until this baby comes out and they can finally meet him. My stomach gets more attention from the kids than I do. When they notice my belly they will immediately give it hugs and kisses and talk to the baby. If he kicks them while I am snuggling them their eyes light up and their hands immediately go to my stomach in hopes that he will kick and play with them some more. It's very adorable. One day I was in the bathroom getting ready and Tessa comes storming in chastising me for something but as soon as she noticed my belly her whole attitude changed and she immediately started talking to the baby in the most loving voice. ("Oh hi baby! You are so cute!" etc.) He is definitely VERY well loved and it warms my heart.
39 Weeks
39 Week Stats:
90% Effaced
2.5 cm Dilated (I think the doctor had fatter fingers...)
Head down getting closer to the exit
My 39 Week appointment was a bit of a disappointment. The weekend previous to it I had slightly increased contractions and felt more pressure "down there" so I was really hopeful that I was progressing and secretly hoped the doctor would send me to the hospital after the appointment. I was torn whether I wanted them to strip my membranes again or not (Same dilemma as before: I would love to be done being pregnant but I still feel really good about my April 2nd induction date). I was so stressed about what to tell the doctor I was tossing and turning the night before. Right before the appointment I decided not to have them strip them but was worried that I would change my mind if given the option again.
This doctor was WAY more casual (a little too casual for my liking) and when checking my cervix told me "you are nice and soft and dilated a couple centimeters." I had to push him to give me actual numbers and percentages. But when he told me I was only 2 cm I was super discouraged. I was feeling so good about progressing this week and according to his measurement I had digressed! (Is that even possible??) When he saw my disappointment he assured me that because I was already 90% effaced once labor started it should go fast. And I could claim 2.5 cm if it made me feel better.
I also noticed that the past couple of weeks my blood pressure has been slowly increasing and this appointment I was at 134/83 or something like that. Which is WAY high for me. (under 120/80 is normal and I am normally quite a bit under that). I asked the doctor about it and he said it is normal to slowly increase blood pressure the last few weeks and it wasn't above the concerning zone (which is apparently above 140).
I asked him about my extra fluid and if there was any concern for a prolapsed cord if my water broke. (This was a concern when I was pregnant with Tessa since I live 30 minutes away from the hospital.) He said that since his head was pretty far down already and it wasn't THAT much extra fluid, they weren't too concerned with that so I could go ahead and plan on my normal induction date.
I left the appointment feeling a little bitter towards the baby for not progressing more. I feel like I am going to be pregnant FOREVER even though I already have in induction date set for just a week away. Why can't my babies just progress on their own? Why does my uterus have to be such a cozy place for them to live so they never want to leave?? I know I should be really grateful that they like my uterus so much and that I am able to carry my babies full term and have minimal complications but when I hit that last week in pregnancy my hormones take over.
One more week before meeting my baby boy!
40 Weeks
April 1st I hit my official due date. I have never gone this far before and I was feeling DONE. But luckily the last two days before my induction was General Conference, Easter, and GORGEOUS outside. So I was able to be distracted and enjoy the weekend. On Sunday (my due date) I was told I was going to be receiving a call about when to come in the next day for my induction. We waited anxiously for it and in the afternoon it finally came. They told me I was "on-call" for tomorrow and they could call me any time during the day starting at 6 AM so I should keep my phone handy with the volume up. If they hadn't called me by noon I was welcome to call them to check on their status.
To say I was a little disheartened was an understatement. They basically told me nothing and to me it meant there was a chance that they would be too busy to even induce me the next day OR that I would have to wake my kids up at the crack of dawn and haul them in the car ASAP to make it to the hospital within an hour. Since I could have been induced a week prior but opted for the later date because I liked the actual date of April 2nd better made me frustrated. You're telling me that I waited an extra week and I STILL don't get the date I wanted??
I decided we needed to enjoy the gorgeous spring weather and go for a walk. Maybe that would start my labor naturally and it wouldn't matter if I got called or not. For the sake of a destination we decided to walk to the elementary school the boys would be attending next year. It was about a mile away. The way there was great and I was feeling good. I wasn't really contracting any more than usual but I could feel the baby shifting farther down. As soon as we arrived at the school I felt the need to go to the bathroom and I had to go RIGHT NOW. Of course it was Sunday so the school was closed and the school is located basically in the middle of nowhere so there was not a nearby bathroom. I seriously considered going in the bushes since no one was around but since it was #2 I figured I shouldn't risk someone running into that later. (TMI?) We figured the best solution was for me to try to book it back home and Jason would walk at a more leisurely pace with the kids. The only problem with that is when I need to use the restroom I tend to contract a LOT. So I would speed walk until a contraction came and I would have to slow down a little then pick up the pace once it passed. Since I missed a call from my mother earlier I decided now would be a good time to call her back to distract me. It worked! I made it all the way home with no incident.
After the walk I felt sore and started to contract perhaps slightly more, but not much. Even if it didn't put me into labor, it was a beautiful day and a good two mile walk with my family so I had no regrets.
Between having to *literally* get up every 30 minutes to use the bathroom, feeling stressed about missing the induction call, being super hot, and having some fairly strong contractions, I barely got any sleep that night.
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