Scary Childbirth Class

Wednesday night was my 3rd childbirth class. This one covered medical interventions and pain killers. The scary part was in the video - I didn't think they would actually show a c-section, an epidural, an episiotomy... While I have read about all of the different types of intervention and drugs, it is entirely different watching them. After that we were shown the tools that could be used in our deliveries, including what forceps look like and a vacuum suction device. Yikes!

Last weekend and this weekend have been very productive. Garen has been out of town and I have taken the opportunity to reorganize half of the house. He won't be able to find a thing when he gets home. I also made sheets for the bassinet (they don't sell the right size for out bassinet!), and started seedlings for a landscaping project Garen and I are planning to do this spring. I sanded the shelf Garen made and restained it. When Garen comes home he will polyurethane it - I'd do it myself, but its fumes are bad for pregnant women. I guess the "nesting" instinct has set in. As soon as the shelf is finished and up the nursery will be done and I can take and post pictures!

Friday night my sister-in-law Heather gave birth to a baby girl, Ava Rhylee. I can't wait to meet her and introduce her to her cousin Lucas. I'll post a picture of her when I get one.

As of today, I am 35 weeks and 1 day pregnant. Lucas is still heads-up. Bending over is getting much more difficult. It hasn't been easy for a long time, but now it is actually a bit painful! If only I weren't clumsy....dropping things is something I'm very good at. Wednesday is my next doctor's appointment. Then I will start going every week for the last 4 weeks of pregnancy. It is so weird to think that within a month, I'm going to be a mom!

Work Shower this week

Let me start off with my doctor's appointment this week. I went in on Wednesday for my 33 weeks appointment. In the past 3 weeks I gained another 5 pounds, which puts me at 30 pounds total now. I go back again in 2 weeks, and then I will start going to the doctor every week until I have the baby. Lucas and I are doing well. I asked the doctor to poke and prod to figure out which way Lucas is laying. His head is up by my ribs and his butt is down below my belly button. His back is to my stomach. The doctor isn't concerned that he is still heads up. He said we won't care about that until I am 37 weeks. Then, if he hasn't turned yet, the doctor will manually try to turn him. But he has 3 weeks to flip. Now I know what has been poking my ribs when I laugh...a head!

Thursday the ladies at work had a shower for me. It was really nice. We had lunch and they had the most adorable rocking horse cake! Lucas got so much stuff, and a lot of things that we really needed! We got his bouncer (which Nilla absolutely LOVES), a bunch of cute clothes and blankets, bath-time stuff, some health stuff, feeding stuff, a Boon Frog Pod, a changing pad, and some homemade gifts. Nurse Helen knit a beautiful blanket, and another coworker painted a stool. I was really surprised and overwhelmed by everyone's generosity!
I also had childbirth class again this week. Garen is out of town, so my friend Shannon went with me. Shannon has 2 children (both were over 11 lbs!) so it was nice to have an experienced person with me. Of course, Garen missed the birth video! We also practiced breathing and relaxation positions. I'm planning on drugs, LOTS of drugs, especially after watching the video. Unfortunately, they won't give me drugs until I am dilated to 4 cm, which took the lady on the video almost 8 hours! So the breathing and relaxation techniques may actually be necessary even with the drugs. Shannon and I did a lot of hugging! It was really very funny. The girl-girl couples in the room outnumbered the guy-girl couples (4 ladies in the class have husbands in Iraq, & 1 isn't married).

As of today I am 34 weeks and 0 days pregnant (although I'm posting this late enough that I might as well add the 1 day!). Lucas should be over 5 pounds now. He is definitely getting bigger as some of his kicks are beginning to sting and hurt a bit. I'm feeling great. Getting up and down is a challenge, especially with my back. I'd say the sciatica has definitely taken a turn for the worse, but I only have 6 more weeks to get through. It's amazing how comforting having an end in sight is.

First Childbirth Class

Halleluiah, this week is over! Life can slow down a bit now! Aside from Garen and I both working ridiculous amounts of overtime this week, throw in a childbirth class, a church membership class, and the last week of class for Garen. Oh, and throw in a bunch of tornados and storm warnings, plus voting in the primary, and I'm exhausted again just typing it!

We had the first of 5 childbirth classes this week. We learned about the anatomy of how the baby grows and what it does to my insides, explaining many of the symptoms that occur during pregnancy. We also were explained how to tell when you are in labor and the difference between real labor and false labor. The scariest part was when the instructor held up a diagram showing how large 10 centimeters is! I mean, I understand how big the baby is, but seeing that circle was disturbing! We also were taken on a hospital tour and explained many of the hospital specific policies and procedures. The hospital is very pro-"baby-in-the-room", as opposed to keeping the baby in a nursery. We both really liked that.

I am the 2nd farthest along in the class, but the 2nd smallest as far as looking pregnant. All of the girls look farther along than me, and most aren't due until the end of April or the beginning of May. The only girl I look more pregnant than isn't due until the end of May! There are about 15 pregnant ladies in the class. Garen will miss the next 2 classes, and then will be back for the last 2. In his absence, my friend Shannon is going to come with me.

As of today, I am 33 weeks and 0 days pregnant. Lucas is the size of a honeydew. My next doctors appointment is this week, and I am dreading hopping on a scale again. I outgrew a pair of pants this week, which was sad and depressing. I really don't want to have to buy more maternity clothes with only a month and a half left! I finally took another belly picture.

We have a name! Lucas Mercer Grashot

Let me start off by apologizing for not posting last weekend. Garen came home and we have been so busy! Last Saturday we spent the morning with our Pastor. We start taking church membership classes this week. There are 13 classes total, and with Garen's travel schedule, we will be missing several of the group classes and have to make them up one-on-one. Not to mention we are going to have a baby before classes are over!

Garen had quite a Honey-Do list when he came home. First I had him finish the drawers he was building in my kitchen cabinets. Then I had him build a shelf for the baby’s room. While he was working on that, I was busy making special wall letters to put on the shelf. We both finished, however, I don't think I like the color I had Garen stain the shelf, so we will redo it this weekend, hang it, and I'll try to post a picture of it next weekend.

I went to the doctor last week for my 31 week appointment. I've gained another 4 pounds, for a grand total of 24 pounds now. Lucas kicked the doctor while he was listening to his heartbeat! It was pretty funny. I go back on the 13th of February. That date just sounds too close to March!

The ladies at work are throwing me a baby shower on Valentine's Day. And my friends in town are throwing Garen and I a shower on March 1. This having a baby thing is starting to get very real very quickly! Our baby stroller and car seat came in this week. I had to send the stroller back...Babies R Us sent the wrong color. My new stroller should be here next week.

As of today I am 32 weeks and 0 days pregnant. There are only 56 days left until my due date! Lucas' skin is turning from red to pink and pretty soon he will need his fingernails cut!