Ready for Launch

That I am.....ready for launch! A long time friend and ex-boss emailed that to me after he read my last blog post and it made me chuckle, so I thought it was perfect for the title of this post! Thanks RS!

With that, there's not much new to report. I just got through speaking with Administration at Plantation General Hospital. We are all set with our 12:30 section. We have to be there at 10:00 to get everything squared away with Registration, then I will head to Triage where I will have final labs done, and get prepped for surgery! I have to fast from midnight tonight until after surgery, so it's a good thing that I'll be sharing my last meal with my family tonight for my Mom's birthday, which is today! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM! I will be spending the day, trying to keep my mind occupied, by cooking, cleaning, doing laundry and making sure we are all set for when we come home as a family of 4.

As not to miss a beat as a Big Brother, David wants Tyler to stay the night in the hospital with us, so I have to make sure that we have all his stuff together. David will be dropping him off with the sitter for the day on Wednesday and Thursday for some play time with his buddies, so I have to make sure that all his meals are handled, as well. Already having 1 child does make it a little bit harder to prepare for this. Lots to cover! Not to mention the dogs. My parents will be keeping them for the time that we are in the hospital, so I have to get them "packed" too!

What it all boils down to is the blessing of a new life that we will be celebrating tomorrow! We can't wait! I'm sure there won't be much sleep to be had tonight. I'll leave you with my last belly pic at 39 Weeks! As I mentioned, I am ready for launch!!!!!! The next post will be an update on Riley's arrival from a Proud Mommy & Daddy of 2! And so it goes...

Reality Check

The BIG day is approaching and I am suddenly facing the reality of the whole situation. Funny how one can be pregnant for 9 months, knowing full and well what the end result will be, but it just doesn't sink in until it's "time".

I think it really hit me yesterday at my LAST OB CHECKUP when Dr. Grenitz said, "OK, I'll see you Tuesday". WHAT?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!? You mean, that's it until the big day?????? Such a bittersweet moment, that I even teared up a little. I quickly regained my composure because I didn't want to seem like such a sap, but let's face it, I am a sap and being pregnant does not help! With that, I made my follow-up postpartum appointment, thanked everyone for their well wishes, hugged the girls and told them I would see them in 3 weeks with our new bundle of joy.

As it turns out, the patient before me in the OR did deliver early, so my time slot did get moved to 12:30 for my c-section. I'm super happy about this because I'd rather go earlier than later. Also, there is now the possibility of Riley and Tyler being born around the same time of day, since my time slot with Tyler was also 12:30. Also, even more exciting, my Mom asked if she could be in the O.R. with David and I for the delivery and my Dr. is going to allow a 2nd "cheerleader", so we're excited about that!!!

We're all still happy and healthy. I'm trying to enjoy and relax these last few days before Riley's arrival, but I just can't sit still. It's just not my thing. Sleep is apparently not my thing anymore, either. It doesn't happen. The heat is restricting the duration of my outdoor activities, but I'm still on the go. Our stats as of yesterday's visit were:
Mommy's Weight Gained to Date: 42 lbs
Mommy's BP: 110/68
Fundus Height: If you can believe, I forgot to ask AGAIN!!! Ugh!
Riley's HR: 140 bpm

ONLY 5 DAYS TO GO!!!

Full-Term!

Has anyone seen my belly button? I seem to have temporarily misplaced it!
37 Week Belly

The 37-Week milestone brings two beautiful words: full-term! How sweet it is! Now, whenever Riley's born, she's likely to thrive, even if she does decide to come before August 24th.

I spent the days leading up to 37 weeks battling a horrible cold. My head felt like it weighed 50lbs. with all of the congestion and sleep was non-existent. Of course, there's not much a poor pregnant girl can take to alleviate those symptoms, so I had no choice but to tough it out. I can finally say that I am starting to feel human again. I can't wait to actually taste what I am eating.

As always, my timing was impeccable! (Can you sense the sarcasm?) To make matters even worse, the nasty cold showed up just in time for our 2nd Annual family vacation on Hollywood Beach last weekend. It did put a little damper on my plans, as I was planning on going down early on Friday, but, I felt horrible, so we didn't make it down there until Friday night. Ultimately, it actually turned out to be a nice time and I think the salty sea air and the high humidity actually helped me. I felt much better by Sunday and now, it is finally breaking up and I can somewhat breathe out of my nose again. I took some pictures at the "Robinson Retreat" for you to enjoy. As I previously mentioned, there were 3 of us "Preggos" in our bikinis, so it really was a sight to see. My Sister and Cousin are both 28 weeks along, so we all took a picture together. My cousin Jeff also joined in the action, since he has a belly of his own. The people walking by on the Boardwalk got good entertainment that afternoon. Good times, GREAT memories!

At my weekly checkup today, all went well. My GBS test from last week came back negative, which is good news. Just one less thing to have to worry about. I had my first internal examination (oh, joy!) and the verdict is zero dilation. My cervix is still closed for business!!! This is fine with me, since I am yet to pack my hospital bag.

Stats, thus far, are:
Mommy's Total Weight Gain: 41 lbs. (looks like I might be neck & neck with Tyler's pregnancy, when I gained 44 lbs. total)
Mommy's BP: 117/71
Riley's HR: 156 bpm
Fundus Height: Whelp, I forgot to ask him what this was.....so I'll call tomorrow so that I have accurate records. Darn pregnancy memory!!!

I also saw the Hematologist today, for a follow up. My anemia has improved, which is good. He wants me back to do another follow up 2 weeks after Riley's birth, to see if things are back to normal postpartum. I presume that they will be, especially since I will continue my prenatal vitamin until I am through nursing.

12 DAYS TO GO!!!!! And so it goes...

Let the Weekly Visits Begin!

Baby Bump at the Beach, 36 Weeks
Today marks 36 Weeks, 3 Days pregnant. Just about 20 short days from now, Riley will have made her way into this world, making David and I Proud Parents of 2 and Tyler a Proud Big Brother.

My C-Section has been scheduled for August 24, 2010 (39 Weeks, 2 Days) at 2:30pm. The patient scheduled before me in the OR is also my Dr's patient. My Dr. told me that if that patient ends up going into labor prior to that, there is a chance that I may get her spot at 12:30. That would be so ironic, seeing how that was the same surgery time I had with Tyler, who arrived at 1:07pm.

At my checkup with my OB this morning, which marks the beginning of my weekly visits until Riley's birth, I had my Group B Strep (GBS) test done. This is a common test done at this point of pregnancy which tests for bacterial infection in pregnant women. Surprisingly, my fundus was still measuring small. My Dr. told me it could be one of two things; she is small or she is already settled in my pelvis. I'm hoping it's that she's small, but I have my doubts. Although, I don't have excruciating pressure in my pelvis yet, so it could be that she is small. We'll just have to wait and see. I go back to the Hematologist next Wednesday for a follow up on my anemia, but so far, all of my labs have come back good. My BH contractions are still present. As a matter of fact, David and I watched as I was having one the other night. If only I had a camera to capture the look on his face. My whole belly tightens and forms to Riley when I have them. It is pretty crazy. I'm going to try to catch one on video.

Mommy & Riley stats are as follows:
Mommy's Total Weight Gained to date: 38lbs
Fundus Height: 33cm
Mommy's BP: 110/58
Riley's HR: 128bpm

Those are the facts, as we know them. Aside from that, we are just finalizing all else in preparation for our second little miracle. Riley's hospital bag has been packed since last week, only because hers was the fun one to pack. Mine is still yet to be packed, but mine is the boring stuff. The bassinet is set up in our room and I am going to get the glider out of storage this week. We're looking forward to our 2nd Annual Family Stay-cation this weekend with the whole fam-damily. I like to refer to it as the Robinson Retreat, since it's all my Mom's side of the family. We had such a great time last year! This year, there will be 3 preggos on the beach, so it should be a sight to see!!! Something tells me that I will be spending LOTS of time in the pool with this awful heat! Stay tuned for more pictures of baby bumps on the beach! And so it goes...