37-week checkup!

Today, I was supposed to have my weekly appointment with Dr. Delo (one of my faves) but she called in sick and so I had to see Erin, the Nurse/Practitioner, who is very nice but no Dr. Delo. We waited an awfully long time because Erin was covering double the patients.

All good news again! (Thankfully!)

Baby's heartbeat was 146 and my blood pressure was still great. I measured exactly where I should be (37 cm.) and I gained one pound! (Wait, why am I happy about this?)

During the exam, she was able to tell that some progress is being made -- the baby's head is moving down, I am starting to "thin out" and I was a "fingertip" dilated!

Next Thursday, I have an appointment with Dr. Whiteside. We should know more then, but a little progress is very exciting!!!

my pregnancy -- 37 weeks! (holy moly!)

Congratulations — your baby is full term! This means that if your baby arrives now, his lungs should be fully mature and ready to adjust to life outside the womb, even though your due date is still three weeks away.Your baby weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel (like a stalk of Swiss chard). Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long. But don't be surprised if your baby's hair isn't the same color as yours. Dark-haired couples are sometimes thrown for a loop when their children come out as blonds or redheads, and fair-haired couples have been surprised by Elvis look-alikes. And then, of course, some babies sport only peach fuzz.The vegetables are going international! I had heard of Swiss chard, but I don't think I've actually ever eaten it. We started calling the baby "Swiss Chard-ie Brown" because our nephew John used to pronounce Charlie Brown "Chard-ie Brown". Anyway...inside joke.

This morning, as I saw the 2-4 inches of snow outside with the freezing rain pelting down on top of it...just before our power went out and I had to ask Brandon to manually open the garage door for me so I could get out and drive to work in the ice and snow...I was reminded of the days when women would sit around in their rocking chairs, knitting booties and waiting for their babies to arrive. *Sigh* I can make it 3 more weeks, right?

The best part is that our baby is now full term and would be completely healthy if born today. We are both so thankful for that and for making it this far. Parenthood is just around the corner... :)

pictures from my shower at work!

At long last, here are a few pictures from my work shower which took place January 15th. I already blogged about it, but I just got the pictures today from my friend.

This might be the worst picture I've ever taken...I can't even believe I'm putting it on here! But this was the "moment of surprise"! Not quite sure what I'm doing or saying...

Beautiful diaper-cake centerpieces with tons of fun accessories, made my my co-worker and friend, Melissa.

This cake was adorable...and delicious! From Costco, I believe.

The table, before anyone sat down. They really went all out for me!

Bring on the presents...and more goofy faces!

I was REALLY excited to get our video monitor! We've used it already and it's awesome!

And the final gift of the day was our Travel System (stroller and carrier for those not "in the know"). About 20 people pitched in and we were so thankful!

Now, we're ready for Baby Davis to arrive!!! Thanks to all of my CBS friends (past and present) who attended... xoxo

belly & nursery pics @ 36 weeks

Thought I'd update everyone on my expanding condition! Some say it's quite "basketball-like"...

...and with less than four weeks to go, our nursery is done!

Gotta love removable vinyl wall stickers!

Our changing area...
The crib and tall dresser with matching lamp...

We hope baby Melon loves it as much as we do! Thanks to everyone who bought us gifts that made this all possible. xoxo

36-week checkup

Today was my first "internal" with Dr. Tataneni and it wasn't as bad as I was anticipating. According to her evaluation, nothing was happening yet...which is fine with me since I still have 4 weeks to go! She also performed the Group B Strep test (which I will spare you the details of) and we had a really good talk about pretty much everything related to my fears about the birth. She said that their whole practice's philosophy is not to judge the mother on how she wants to deliver...just to give her what she wants! Even if it's an epidural at 10 cm!! (Which was soo comforting to hear!)

Oh, first they checked the baby's heartbeat which was 160 -- the fastest it's been in a while! My blood pressure, sugar, etc. were all good, too. Interestingly enough, although my belly is measuring properly for this stage of my pregnancy, I did not gain any weight in the past 2 weeks. They didn't seem to be too concerned about this, and I read in one of my many books that you can "level off" toward the end with weight gain. Oh, and she thought baby Melon was about 6 pounds, maybe a little less.

Next appointment is next Friday with Dr. Delo! And then the following week with Dr. Whiteside. Stay tuned for more details...

my pregnancy -- 36 weeks!

Your baby is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. She now weighs almost 6 pounds (like a crenshaw melon) and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. She's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Your baby swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, resulting in a blackish mixture, called meconium, will form the contents of her first bowel movement.

At the end of this week, your baby will be considered full-term. (Full-term is 37 to 42 weeks; babies born before 37 weeks are pre-term and those born after 42 are post-term.) Most likely she's in a head-down position. But if she isn't, your practitioner may suggest scheduling an "external cephalic version," which is a fancy way of saying she'll try to coax your baby into a head-down position by manipulating her from the outside of your belly.

I honestly cannot believe that our little melon will be full-term after this week. My pregnancy has gone by so fast and I can honestly say I'm enjoying every minute of it!

In case you never heard of a "crenshaw melon" -- because we sure hadn't -- here's a photo!

baby shower at work

To my surprise, the ladies at work joined together and threw me a lovely baby shower at 4:00 on Thursday in our large conference room, complete with balloons, diaper cake centerpieces, cake and lots and lots of presents! The only thing missing was Brandon. :(

All told, we were given almost everything left on our registry including our travel system (stroller and carrier), video monitor, boppy and cover, tons of clothes, grooming set, diapers and various other wonderful things I can't remember at this moment.

I was very grateful and overwhelmed by everyone's generosity!

Photos to come; they are on my friend's camera in Punta Cana... :)

my pregnancy - 35 weeks!

Your baby doesn't have much room to maneuver now that he's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds (pick up a honeydew melon). Because it's so snug in your womb, he isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times he kicks should remain about the same. His kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Most of his basic physical development is now complete — he'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.

Brandon guessed right two weeks in a row! Honeydew you love me? :)

34-week checkup with dr. tatineni

Today was our last of the 2-week interval check-ups and we had the pleasure of seeing Dr. T., who I blogged about a few months ago. She is so friendly, and really took her time chatting with us, which we appreciated. My blood pressure was great, baby cantaloupe's heartbeat was 151, and my belly (and weight gain) were measuring right on track! All good things. My sugar was a little elevated, which I blame on Christmas and Shower cookies...and cake. :)

I discussed the venous reflux with her and she said it should go away after pregnancy, but she noted that my legs looked a little bit swollen. Time to practice sleeping with my feet propped up on a pillow, while simultaneously trying to stay on my left side. Should be interesting...

My next appointment is in two weeks, where they will do the Group B Strep cultures and start the internal exams -- I can't wait!!! (That was sarcasm, folks...) She also warned me that "everything hurts more in pregnancy". Great... At least she's honest, right?

After that, I'll go every week until the baby comes. Holy moly...can you believe it's getting so close???

my pregnancy - 34 weeks!

Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers — which will help regulate her body temperature once she's born — are filling her out, making her rounder. Her skin is also smoother than ever. Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well. If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies.

I don't particularly enjoy this fruit, but I love our little cantaloupe!

my baby shower!

On Saturday, my beautiful Mom threw me the best Baby Shower Brunch ever at Calabria's Restaurant in Castle Shannon. Not only did we get to munch on French Toast and bacon (not to mention my Mother-in-Law's awesome cookies), but I was surrounded by all of the most special ladies in my life and was spoiled beyond belief! We ended up with a house full of baby stuff and all we need now is our little one.

Here I am, with the Grandmas (Brandon's Mom, Linda and my Mom, Pat).

Me and my wonderful sisters-in-law, Kara & Nikki, along with my two beautiful nieces, Carly & Reece.
A table full of my favorite friends: l-r clockwise Carrie Lynn, Heather, Gina, Sara, Melanie, Jodie, Donelle & Carrie. (You all read my blog, right?)

Here I am, gushing over one of the many adorable baby gifts I recieved.

I guess I gushed a lot, didn't I?

I was just very excited. :)

And here we are...me and my wonderful husband, Brandon.

Afterward, my family helped us back to our house to unload our loot. It looked like a mini Babies "R" Us in our kitchen! Reece had fun, playing with a lot of her cousin's new toys...

christmas part two

We spent the afternoon at my parents' house, enjoying Reece and exchanging Christmas presents! Here are some shots of the fun...

Reece surveying all the loot....Mom opening up her presents...

Dad doing the same...Here's one of me...And one of Brandon, too...Here are Chris & Nikki...in front of the roaring fire.

Reece hung out in the rocking chair for a while, pretending to talk on the phone...even though it was really a kitchen timer.
Reece got a beautiful faux fur vest and purse from cousin Kelly, Don & Diaz in New York. Nikki was proud that she knew exactly what to do with the purse!

Afterward, she stripped down to her diaper and hopped on her new rockin' zebra!

As Reece would say "Thank you, Santa"!

happy 2009!

Last night, we rang in the New Year at my cousin Laurie's family's house in Peters Township. We played games with cousins, ate TONS of food, and stayed up WAY past our bedtime. The best part was that Chris, Nikki and Reece were able to celebrate with us for the first time since the Millennium! Here are some shots!

Look who found the dip! Reminds me of myself at that age...

Reece met her cousin Braidyn for the first time. Here they are, checking each other out at the snack table.

Me and Brandon...our last New Year's Eve before becoming parents!

Mom and Dad, enjoying some New Year's bubbly...

My Uncle Pudge set up quite an impressive fireworks display!

Here is the whole gang -- and this isn't even everyone in the family! (Thanks to my cousin-in-law Chrissy for setting up the timer and emailing this to me!)

Reece made it a little past midnight, then konked out immediately with her Papa...

Happy New Year to everyone! xoxo