Last Pregnancy Post!!!

Well, here's my 40 weeks, 4 days final belly shot! 35 extra pounds... that hopefully at least 12-15 of will be gone tomorrow! In just 10 hours, we'll be at the hospital for the long-awaited day and boy are we ready! It's a very surreal feeling to know we'll be parents tomorrow, meeting our little boy for the first time, and though I've been thinking about it non-stop for the past 9 months, I just don't think it's really possible to know what it'll be like until it actually happens! We had a good "final" weekend. Being "overdue" is definitely really uncomfortable - I can hardly sleep, I'm achy and baby movements are kinda painful at this point. But at least that didn't last too long, just the last 3 or 4 days... and knowing he'll be out first thing in the morning makes it all worth it!

Thanks to all of you who have followed us on this journey, prayed for us and given me encouragement along the way! I will definitely keep this blog going... just with baby pictures now! The posts may be slim for the next couple of days though... we'll literally have our hands full! :) Can't wait to introduce you to the newest Wellington... by his REAL name... no more BabyW!!!

We'll be at Sentara Leigh Hospital for the next 3 days...and we'll have our cell phones if you'd like to call or come visit!

Lots of love,
Melissa & Mike

A day & a half...

I got a call today saying that they bumped us up to 7:30 am on Monday now... so that MY doctor can do the c-section instead of the other doctor in the practice. I was totally fine with the other doctor, but this will be even better... I don't know how that got arranged, but I didn't even know my doctor would be working that day, so it's pretty cool she pulled some strings to do it for us. We have to be at the hospital at 5:30 am - (which should be no problem considering I can't seem to sleep more than a couple hours at a time lately.)

Just laying low today and hoping NOT to go into labor :) - that's a new one! I just followed a blog-friend's journey over the last two days of 36 hours of labor only to discover the baby just wouldn't fit and they ended up with a c-section afterall... she gave an amazing effort, and now has a beautiful baby boy in her arms (8 lbs 15 oz) but is surely exhausted and will have a tough recovery. We've had crazy similar pregnancies and after seeing what she just went through, I continue to be at peace with my doctor's recommendation for us to not even attempt a vaginal delivery.

This boy was SOOO active last night... I think he was trying to find his way out or something - it was wild - he's never moved like that for so long! I was trying to stretch out to give him some more room, but it was a pretty futile effort... he is CRAMMED in here! It's a good thing we're about to get him out because I think he is ready! My belly is as tight & full as can be!

A Plan... Finally!

I'm going to attempt to make the long story short.

We are scheduled for a c-section at 9:30 Monday morning. July 20th... a nice even number :)

I went to the doctor today and found out a few things:

1. From feeling my abdomen, she thinks BabyW weighs more in the upper 8 lb. range, probably not bigger than 9 lbs.... so not huge, but still a big baby.
2. My cervix would be favorable for labor... considering I'm dilated 2 cm and 70% effaced except that it is still very high and the big clencher....
3. I have a narrow, heart-shaped pelvis, (rather than a wide oval-shaped one) and this means a vaginal birth, particularly with a larger baby, would be very risky, and maybe impossible.

She feels very sure that this baby would never fit through my pelvis and that it's shape explains why my cervix is still high to begin with. MAYBE if I was having a small baby (6-7 lbs) a vaginal delivery could work, but with 8 lbs and up, it's just not a safe idea. There's always a tiny chance it could work, but the risks far outweigh the possibility and she strongly recommends that I have a scheduled c-section. Even if I did go into labor on my own, it would almost certainly end in an emergency c-section, so it would be much better to just go ahead and schedule one. We thought we could schedule it for this afternoon actually... (which would have been soooo ideal) but we found out that the hospital is slammed busy and Monday morning is the soonest. If I should start having contractions before then, I'll have to have an emergency c-section, and they'll be forced to fit me in, but otherwise, we're set for Monday morning.

So I am praying that I won't start into labor this weekend, and that we'll just be able to proceed with the scheduled c-section first thing Monday. Unless it was some extreme crazy situation where it was very clear the baby was fitting fine into my pelvis and about to come out, we don't intend to even attempt a natural labor... it's just too risky.

It's been a roller-coaster of a few days, but we have so much peace about this plan, and we are thankful that we didn't really have to make the decision, it was practically made for us. And it's so exciting to know we'll really be holding our little boy in just 2 1/2 days! Obviously, I'll have a tougher recovery and there are some downsides & risks to the c-section, but we'll face them as they arise and it's just the road we have to take. We appreciate your prayers, especially for Monday morning, and we'll post pictures when we can! For anyone that's local, we'll be at the hospital at least through Wednesday, so you're welcome to come meet him: we'll be at Sentara Leigh.

Thanks for walking this journey alongside of us. We're almost there!

Due Yesterday :)

Well, I'm super sleepy, so this'll be quick but I did just want to update a little. Today was a much better day. I think my emotions/hormones chilled out a little and I was able to relax. I did talk to my doctor and she wants me to come in first thing in the morning and see if there has been any progression. Due to the size of the baby and the fact that so far my body has not progressed anywhere near where it needs to for labor, if nothing has changed, it's likely we'll schedule a c-section. Stay tuned...

I am really at peace that my doctor will recommend what is the safest option for me and baby, so whatever that may look like is okay. I know she wouldn't recommend a c-section unless it was truly necessary. Please pray for us that we'll feel good about our decision tomorrow, whatever it may be.

More than I expected...

Well, I don't really feel like posting tonight, but I also don't have it in me to call everyone back who has called to check in on us today... it's just been a bit of an emotional day. (By the way, thank you all for your phone calls... I know you love us!!... I just know everyone is anxiously awaiting news that we're having the baby and he's just not ready yet and I'm getting tired and emotional and stressed.)

So I went to the doctor this afternoon and I had the NST first, where I sat in a comfy recliner for about 40 minutes with a fetal monitor on my belly and pushed a button every time I felt the baby move... it was just monitoring his heart rate and it all looked great. He sounds very healthy. Then I had the ultrasound. While I did get a super quick peek at his feet, hands and face, he's so squished in there that this wasn't much of a show. The ultrasound tech told us she wouldn't be able to tell us anything except for his size, that the rest would have to wait until I see my doctor (which isn't until Monday)... But her news was plenty: his estimated size as of today is 9 pounds 2 ounces!!! That was plenty for me to swallow. I was expecting high 7's to mid 8 lb range. And that's when I basically lost it. I know it'll all work out, but I'm pregnant, and emotional, and honestly, just a bit stressed today. The idea that he's already that big, and he's still hanging out in here growing doesn't exactly mesh well with my hopes for a natural delivery... and then there's the whole c-section thing that I didn't get to discuss with my doctor today and apparently I'm supposed to wait until Monday. I think I'll end up calling her tomorrow. I was prepared that he could very likely be late... even up to 10 days or so past my due date... but that was with the thought that I preferred to go into labor naturally and do it without drugs... that wasn't with the thought that he would be in the 9 to 10 lb range and that it's already likely I could need a c-section if things don't progress better.

There's a part of me that just wants to call tomorrow and say let's just go ahead and schedule a c-section for Friday and be done with it... but then I wonder if I should just give him a little more time to come on his own. I'll admit... the idea of pushing out over 9 lbs vs. a controlled c-section is a little hard to swallow, but I don't really think the c-section is preferable either. It kinda just feels like crappy options. Well, crappy options with the final result being great either way because our baby will be here.

So... that's my honest post for tonight. I'm sorry I didn't return phone calls. And really, I do know that it will all be fine, but forgive me for just having a bit of a pity party tonight... I think I'll go eat some chocolate chip pound cake. That might make me feel better, for a minute. :)

D-Day

Due Day, Doctor Day... it's July 15th and I wish it was Delivery Day! I go to the doctor today for an ultrasound and NST. So as I understand it, I have two options in the next week or so:


Go into labor naturally OR have a scheduled c-section.


At this point, I'm not inducable because of a posterior cervix... if they were to induce me, it would be almost guaranteed to end up in an emergency c-section. Well... I didn't want to be induced anyway, but I do know that it may become necessary to get this boy out after a week or so depending on how well BabyW is faring, amniotic fluid levels, my blood pressure, etc. And because I can't be induced, they'd have to schedule a c-section.


I'm not sure what I think about that. I do know it's not at all what I would pick, but at the same time, I know they do c-sections all the time, and if it's absolutely necessary, I'm not going to stress over what I may have expected different. Even so, it would mean I couldn't hold him right away, I'd have a longer recovery and I'd be very likely to have to have c-sections for future children as well.


I'm trying to keep it in perspective: the important thing is that we are about to meet our little boy very soon and we just want him to have a safe arrival, no matter how it plays out! AND... it IS still possible that labor could happen on it's own without any intervention and there'd be no decision to make... all we can do is wait & see... it really depends on how he is doing and continues to do over the next few days.

Gourmet Food at Home!

I've had some extra time on my hands since we're still waiting for a baby... and I've been cooking some of my favorite things! I love to try recreating foods I've had at restaurants, so this week, I made Taste Unlimited's Grilled Chicken Salad, Gourmet Gang's Lemon Basil Pasta Salad and then I did a few of my own things too. I still need to perfect the spices in the two salads, but here's basically what I came up with:

Grilled Chicken Salad (actually Justine did the work for this one!):

We grilled the chicken with some olive oil, garlic powder, basil, salt & pepper, cut it in thin strips, mixed with mayo, sliced grapes, sliced celery, chopped green onion, parsley, salt, pepper and dill weed.

Lemon Basil Pasta Salad:

Penne Pasta tossed with finely chopped tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, fresh chopped basil, parmasean cheese, olive oil, lemon juice, salt & pepper.

Then I made Ali's Chocolate Chip Pound Cake which is DELICIOUS - as you can see there's only half left!

And probably our favorite that I just made up, we liked it so much we made it again 2 days later (and ate it all so there's none left for a picture!): Tuscan Chicken Sandwiches:

Thin Grilled Chicken breasts seasoned with Garlic & Herb marinade & balsalmic vinegar, fresh basil leaves, fresh mozzerella, roma tomatoes sprinkled with olive oil, salt & pepper, and homemade roasted red peppers on Asiago Cheese bread. Amazing!!