Here we are…the count is on.  I have 9 days left until my due date.  Every day I am a little more uncomfortable and anxiously anticipating her arrival.  I think that is the hardest part….Waiting.  I don’t have a clue when she will come.  I mean it could happen any day…that’s just it…any day!.  You can’t put everything on hold waiting for it to happen because what if it doesn’t.  So…we continue to make plans and follow through with commitments as best we can waiting for the moment to come.  It’s a very interesting time.  One that is really about patience and God’s perfect timing.  I like to plan and be organized.  I have at least 2 calendars going at all times.  So this experience is just one of those reminders of how I really don’t have any control at all.  I am subject to the Master’s time and plan.  I do know the truth that God’s timing is perfect and that every day she isn’t here, it is all part of His sovereign plan.  And when she does arrive it will be Perfect.  Thank you God!

Yesterday was my weekly check up.  My doctor said everything is looking good.  I have definitely dropped…so that is a good sign that the baby is descending into the pelvis.  She reminded me that she is not a little baby…but that it looks like my body will be able to handle it at least at this point.  I am dilated to at least a 2 if not a little more.  She also “stripped some membranes” as an effort to move things along.  That was not very fun…but I survived.  The doctor said I did really good.  She said she cried the first time she had that done to her.  I didn’t have any tears, but Micah was reminded why he shouldn’t give me his entire hand to hold when I am in pain.    Hopefully things are moving along and maybe she will be here before the end of the week.  I just hope that she doesn’t decide to come late.  Thank you for all the prayers and support over the last 9 months…and I continue to ask for your prayers as we wait these last few days.

Here we are….I’m in my 36th week.  I feel like I am growing larger every day and the discomforts of pregnancy in the 9th month are definitely increasing daily.  As the warmer weather comes as well…it doesn’t help with the swelling.  As of Sunday morning, I can no longer wear my rings and I can tell my feet are not quite as bony as they usually are.  But…nothing is out of the norm.  Oh…and I think she is dropping some.  I have had several people tell me that they can tell that she has dropped a little.  That’s also a very different feeling. From what I have heard and read…I am definitely experiencing typical pregnancy symptoms…I’m just glad they didn’t set in until this week.

On Tuesday, March 30th, we had our first weekly appointment.  The doctor didn’t say too much.  She reviewed the ultrasound results and didn’t mention any procedures…but there was some concern in her voice and body language.  Nothing is wrong…she just implied that she doesn’t want me to go to full term due to the baby’s size.  Micah’s step grandma (Pearl) has made a prediction according to the Farmer’s Almanac that the baby will come April 10, 11 or 12, which is 2 weeks early.  Now, Grandpa made predictions using this method for our nephews and they were exactly on the day.  Grandpa is no longer with us, but Grandma is trying out her skills.  We will see if she is right.  When we shared this news with the doctor, she laughed a little, but she commented that those dates would actually be really good.   Only time will tell. She also checked my cervix.  I am barely dialated a 1, if at all.  But, I must admit that experience was not what I expected.  I thought it would be similar to our typical yearly exams…but it was not.  Just FYI for those who haven’t experienced this yet…just know it is not what you’re used to and it is very uncomfortable.  Not horrible…but very uncomfortable.

I must admit…I am very excited but becoming terrified of the thought of giving birth.  I keep trying to prepare myself.  I know it will hurt!  That’s the bottom line…but I also know that God designed my body to do this.  I am comforted a little by this, but I am not looking forward to the pain.  I pray for God’s strength and peace as this terrifying but at the same time, an amazing day quickly approaches.

Here are some pics of my 36 week belly.  Yes…I know…I am huge and have more to go!

36 weeks (9 months)

9 months (36 weeks) and looking big!

Okay…so here is the scoop.  On Tuesday of this week we went to the doctor for a check-up.  Everything was good…but when the doctor measured my abdomen I measured smaller than I should be.  Two appointments ago I measured larger, one appointment ago I measured right on and this time I measured almost 3 weeks smaller than I should be.  So as a precaution the doctor said we should do an ultrasound to check and make sure my amniotic fluid was good and that the baby was okay.  So…we drove to Oxford today and had our Ultrasound.

The ultrasound tech, Bob, was the same guy who did our 20 week ultrasound and she measured big then was surprised that I was measuring small.  Sure enough, she did not disappoint us.  She is still BIG!  He even double checked measurements and according to his calculations she now weighs 7lbs 5 oz.  Wait…..did you catch that?  7lbs and 5oz….we still have 5 weeks till my due date.  The computer did say there was a variance of 17 oz….but that could either direction.  It could make her 6lbs 4 oz or it could make her 8lbs 6oz.  He also stated that according to her measurements that the computer calculated her due date as April 3rd not April 23rd.

Now…I realize that this isn’t an exact science and that many women were told one size and delivered another…but…it definitely brings up my gut feeling that she might come early and possibly even on Easter…which is when we have our big Easter production. As long as my water doesn’t break we should be good…but you never know.

I am getting very anxious, excited and nervous…and I realize every day how much closer she is to being here.

As well as having an ultrasound this morning we also had our car seat installation inspected.  Micah did a fabulous job and we passed with flying colors.  The lady said, “In all the years I have been doing this, I have only seen about 2 installed correctly.  Good job!”  I was proud.

After the car seat inspection we met with the anesthesiologist.  He went over all the preliminary paper work and what my options were when it comes to pain medicines.  He explained how the epidural works and pros and cons.  It was very informational and he was hilarious.  He cracked joke after joke but gave us a lot of information.

After the anesthesiologist appointment we went to meet with our Baby Bound nurse.  She reviewed several things that we learned in our Birthing Class, but covered a lot more detail of afterbirth care, infant care and breastfeeding.  It was very good…and a good refresher before she gets here.  I’m not 100% prepared (I don’t think that is ever possible), but I feel that I at least have a good basic knowledge that will help me face the days ahead.   Please pray that we will be the parent’s God intends for us to be.

Enjoy the pics of our new little one!

On Saturday, March 6th 2010, the ladies of Calvary Baptist Church of Connersville, IN threw me an amazing shower.  I was so blessed.  So many women attended and brought us some wonderful goodies for our future little one.  Michelle Reynolds, Heather Wright, Jane Mullins coordinated and took care of all the major logistics from food, to games, to helping me keep track of all the goodies.  I was so blessed not only by the generosity of so many people but by their presence.  Having just moved to Indiana in September 2009 and leaving all that was familiar, I was overcome with emotion that so many people would care for me and my family after only knowing us for about 6 months. Words cannot express my gratitude.

We were also blessed that some of our family could come to the shower as well.  I know it was quite a journey but we were so glad to see them.  Micah’s mom, Jeanne Larkins (Mimi) and sister Sarah Mathis (Aunt Sarah) came up on Friday the 5th and stayed with us thru Sunday AM Service before they traveled back to MO.  It was great to visit, eat lots of food, play board games and just enjoy their company. Also, Micah’s Dad, Keith Mathis (Gramps) and Step-Mom, Wanda Mathis (Grammy) came for the shower.  They had a quick trip of coming and leaving on the same day, but we were also really glad to see them and visit even if it was for a short time.

This day was a wonderful day!  It was a great reminder of the importance of family…both blood relatives and our family in Christ.  I am so grateful that thru the loving grace of our Lord we become family.  No matter where I am, if I am with God’s people, I am with my family.

Here are a few pics from the day to enjoy.  It was beautiful.  Thank you to everyone!

Wow… I’m 8 months along.  It’s a weird thought.  Sometimes it seems like this pregnancy is taking forever and other times it feels like this journey just began.  I am now at 32 weeks and we had a busy day.  We got our crib and our shelving unit in…so today is the day that we are going to put it together.  We started with the shelving unit and got that put together pretty quickly.  It looks awesome!  I am so excited that we have an IKEA in Cincinnati.  I love IKEA.  They have such fun and trendy stuff at a fairly inexpensive price.  Thanks to Michelle Reynolds…because she spent the day with me and agreed to drive her van so that I could bring the shelving unit home.  It barely fit in her van and definitely would not have fit in our cars.  Plus…I got to spend a wonderful day with a wonderful woman of God.  We left at about 10am and headed out to Cincinnati.  Then we stopped and ate at Applebees and headed to IKEA.  After we explore the amazing store and picked up several things to improve our homes. We began our journey home with a stop off at Starbucks.  Yummy!  (Again…you can see where the 19lbs has come from. )

Well..on Saturday, February 27th Micah and I set-up the shelving unit and the crib.  The crib took about 3 hours to put together.  We of course ran into some problems.  One of the pieces wasn’t cut correctly so Micah had to be Mr. Fixit.  He took a box cutter and shaved down the piece that was too big and we made it work.  You can’t tell unless you take it apart.  He did a fabulous job!  We also got along fairly well.  We only had one little tiff and it was easily resolved.  So we did really well for being highly hormonal and doing a home improvement project at the same time.

After we finished we just enjoyed the fruit of our labor.  Putting these things together definitely helped me feel better about her coming.  I was starting to get nervous about her coming and us not being ready.  I think they call this the beginning stages of “nesting.” So here are some pics to enjoy.  We have the Before and After of the crib, and shelving unit. We haven’t done much more with the room because we may not be in this house for very long.  We are searching for a house to buy, and hope that it won’t be too long before we move.  I’ll have to post more of her room once we get a house. Also…I have also included my 8 month (32 week) belly pic.  We are definitely growing. 

On February 2nd I had a doctor’s appointment.  I had went in and had the standard procedures; urine sample, blood pressure and weigh in.  This time my weigh in said that at 28 weeks I had only gained about 9 lbs.  So…not too bad!  When we met with the doctor she gave us the news that my glucose test and iron levels were normal.  That was a huge relief.  I was already supposed to be taking iron supplements but I hadn’t done it yet.  The extra iron would often upset my stomach and I didn’t want to be sick anymore.  So…I was relieved that I didn’t have to take them.  We listened to the heartbeat of our “baby girl” and everything was good.  Since everything was going well she said she didn’t need to see me until 3 weeks.

So…3 weeks later…we had to go to Oxford to the office at the hospital for our appointment.  The same thing happened at this appointment; urine sample, blood pressure and oh yes….the weigh in.  This time…I had gained 10 more lbs in 3 weeks.  At 31 weeks I have now gained 19 lbs total.  I was kind of bummed…but right now it seems like I am still mostly gaining only in my belly.  The doctor was not concerned about the weight gain.  She said especially since I had been so sick in the beginning and had lost weight, this weight gain was not a concern.  Baby girl is definitely growing and keeping active so I hope it is mostly going to her and not me. 

Everything else was going good too…we got to hear her precious little heartbeat and talked about the appointment schedule for the last two months.   Since I am behind in my blogging…my next appointment is this coming Tuesday…March 16th…3 weeks later…and we will see how much I have gained in these 3 weeks.  I hope it is not another 10 lbs. 

Well…Micah and I survived our Birthing Classes.  We were supposed to go on Saturdays, February 6th and 13th…but due to a snow and ice storm they were postponed until Saturdays, February 13th and 20th.  Class ran from 9am – 1pm at McCullough Hyde Memorial Hospital in Oxford, OH and it was facilitated by the BabyBound Nurse, Debbie Baker.  We got up early and headed out to Oxford on that first Saturday.  We arrived to the hospital and headed up to the 2nd floor for our birthing class.  There were about 8 couples in the class.  The first day was filled with introductions and lots of videos.   Ahh…yes…the dreaded videos!

We watched a total of 5 videos.  The first was an overview of the stages of labor…and of course it included a natural birth.  The second video was of a birth with an epidural.  This woman was much more relaxed than any of the others.  The third video was of a woman who took Stadol.  The 4th video was of a woman going all natural and the last video was of a C-Section. Most of the videos were okay, and not too bad.  But every once in awhile there would be some horrible image that would just cause you to cringe and grimace.  Micah sat through them but he didn’t actually watch them.  His face turned a little pale a couple times but for the most part he got out his trusty iPhone and text messaged, tweeted and checked email throughout the videos.  I tried to watch as much as possible but I have to admit…every once in a while I would have to turn my head away.

It was an interesting day.  I was very much aware of what is coming.  I know that God created my body to give  birth…but I also know that the fall of man has increased the pain.  It’s very strange to think that desiring to be a mother outweighs the pain that a woman knows she will have to experience.  Watching those women give birth definitely made the pain factor very real, which is very scary.  But, I am comforted to know that God is with me.

The other part of the first class was all about identifying your desires for the birthing room, but the end result is just to have a healthy baby.  I realize that sometimes the plans I make may not happen, so I must be flexible and understanding if plans have to change.  At this point….I am definitely open to an epidural.  I want to try to wait as long as I can, but if the pain becomes too much I will opt for an epidural.  I don’t really want to take any other drugs.  Some women love them, but meds tend to effect me very strongly.  I don’t want to be in a daze when my baby is born.  The first class helped me at least outline some of my wishes and desires and share them with Micah so that he can be my voice if I am unable to communicate due to concentrating on my labor.

The second class was fun.  This class was more about the different positions you can be in during labor and several relaxation techniques to help you during the labor process.  Micah practiced massage on me, helped me breathe and count, offer encouragement and also help me any way that I need him.  It was a really good experience.  We watched some more videos but they weren’t of the births more of the labor.   In this class we also got to practice dressing and swaddling the baby.  Then we talked about proper breastfeeding techniques.  This class was very hands on and very informative.

Both of the classes gave me an overview of what to expect and the procedures of what to do when you go into labor.  Overall, they helped me realize that I knew more than I thought.  I’m not saying that I am prepared, but at least I feel like I have a basic knowledge of what is to come.  I enjoyed these classes and think that every first time parents should definitely take some kind of class to help you prepare for this journey.

After we finished the classes we enjoyed a nice lunch in Oxford, OH.  The first week we went to Micah’s pick….Chipotle.  The second week we enjoyed pizza at LaRosa’s.  They were both really yummy!  (Can you tell I’m prego?  Everything revolves around food.)

Wow…I am so far behind on my blogging.  But…I want to try and catch up….so let me start where I left off.

Right before Valentine’s Day…Micah told me he had planned a trip for us.  It was called a BabyMoon.  A BabyMoon is like a honeymoon but it happens right before the baby comes.  I was so excited!  Micah in his true romantic fashion wouldn’t tell me anything else about the trip, so it would be a surprise.  All I knew was the dates.  We would leave Monday, February 15th and come home the following day.  It would be a short overnight trip, but well worth it.

Then…Saturday night before our trip…I asked Micah what we needed to pack?  He said that he would go ahead and tell me where we were going and then I could decide how to pack.  He revealed that we would be going to Batesville, IN to a place called Stonebridge Inn and Spa.  You should check out the website http://www.stonebridgeinnandspa.com/

They actually have a package called the BabyMoon package and it included an overnight stay at the Bed & Breakfast, chocolate covered strawberries with turn down service, a 10 Jet Jacuzzi tub, a steam shower and the best part…a couple’s massage.  It was awesome.  Micah and I have never had a professional massage before.  Micah was a little nervous, and I was super excited.  We got to lay right next to each other and Micah wore his gym shorts just to be safe and we had a very relaxing hour.  It was awesome! After the massage we enjoyed fresh fruit and cucumber water (Micah didn’t like the cucumber water) while looking out the window as about 6 inches of snow fell.  It was beautiful.  We then went to our room and relaxed until it was time for dinner.  We found out that the restaurant that we had reservations at was closing due to the weather so the innkeeper quickly made us new reservations at another restaurant in town called the Sherman House.  It was a German restaurant and inn.  It was really delicious.  Micah had a steak with a baked potato and soup and I ate the Chicken Parmagiana with the salad bar and potato cakes.  The appetizer they serve is homemade biscuits with applebutter.  It was yummy.  I was stuffed.  The jacuzzi tub was awesome and helped me relax before bed.  We also enjoyed an evening of movies.  We watched a really dumb romantic comedy…that I can’t remember the name of…and then we watched Hairspray….which is always a crowd-pleaser.  We really enjoyed just spending quality time together talking and enjoying each others company.  I have felt a bond grow between me and Micah over the last 9 months, not only because of this baby growing inside of me, but due to the many changes and challenges that have come our way in the last year.  I can honestly say that I feel closer to him now than ever.  I love him so much and event though the year 2009 was one of the hardest years thus far in our marriage…it has created a bond that I will always appreciate.  I love you Micah!  Thank you for making Valentine’s Day 2010 an unforgettable day!

I am officially in my third trimester.  Today I am 28 weeks 4 days.  There is a lot that happens in the last 3 months or so of pregnancy.  And this is definitely uncharted territory for the Mathis household. I did receive good news today at the doctor’s office.  I passed my glucose test and my Iron is back to normal.  So…no extra, icky iron supplements for me.  Yay! Also, I have gained a total of 13 pounds so far…even though my belly seems huge.  Heartburn is the worst of my symptoms and issues and Tums seems to help most of the time.  And…yes….I know that it is supposed to mean she will have lots of hair. 

She is a very active child.  I feel her move quite often and her little gentle pushes are starting to pack quite a punch.  If you see me whince everyonce in a while it is probably her reminding me that she exists.  I can’t complain…I feel blessed to be having a healthy pregnancy.

Now…if I can just figure out what things to buy for this little one.  There is so much stuff out there, and everyone has their preferences.  I have never been more intimidated in my entire life than I was, walking down the bottle ailse at the store. There are so many to choose from.  So many styles, shapes, colors, brands, sizes, etc. Micah keeps looking at me like I am supposed to know what to get.  I keep telling him…I’m new at this too.   We are learning together. By the way…(side note)…I am so grateful for a loving, supportive and actively involved husband.  He has stood by me every step of this pregnancy and even when he doesn’t understand he still does his part and whatever I ask him to do.  I am blessed to have such a wonderful husband.  I know that even though we have a lot to learn and figure out, we will be fine, because we will do it together.  I love you Micah!

We have lots of upcoming events so there will be a lot more to post in the upcoming days and weeks.  I’ll try to keep you posted on all that is new and interesting.

Third Trimester Begins

The New Year rolls around and everyone sets their resolutions to be a better person, healthier person and a more successful person.  This year, I find myself with a new perspective.  Losing weight…really isn’t an option at this time.    So…I’ve began thinking.  I’m becoming a mother.  Wow…that’s a scary and exciting thought.  Ever since I was a little girl, playing house with my baby dolls, I wanted to be a mother. There was something about the idea of taking care of a little baby and mananging a home that sounded like a good idea.  I don’t know if it is all innate or if we were conditioned to feel that way…all I know is that I desired that experience.  Now, I am 30 years old and I am about to embark on this childhood dream. Of course, the childish rendition of this experience leaves out all the not-so-fun parts.  I never understood the realistic pain of childbirth, breastfeeding, and late night cries.  And with all the “diapers” I changed on my doll…I know they never stunk like the real thing.  However, as much as those things don’t sound like a good idea…I have to admit I am getting excited about the arrival of our little girl even with this knowledge.

My New perspective in this New Year is that EVERYTHING I do will impact this child.  I knew this concept but not like I do now.  I am bombarded with the thoughts of how every decision I make, every word I say and literally everything in my life will impact this child.  Some of them more than others…but now I am faced with the reality and responsibility of having this child.  Granted…I’m definitely not perfect…so I’m going to have to depend on the Sovereignty, Mercy & Grace of God …A LOT!  I pray for the future of this child. I pray that I will be the mother I was created to be.  I pray that I will be the disciplinarian who is loving but stern when I am supposed to be.  I pray that I will be a parent who protects my child but also knows when to let them experience their own choices and consequences.  I pray that I will be wise and not naiive.  I know I will make lots of mistakes, but I am so aware of my sinful nature and the responsibility of fighting that nature especially as I become a parent.