2 Days Left...We're Having a Baby!!!

The wait is finally over and we can't believe it!!!

We visited Dr. Spoon today and we received a lot more information than we expected. We were really excited to get our weekly update because as we get closer to our due date the excitement to meet our little girl grows.

We had a feeling that she may be coming in the next week or so because she has really dropped into my pelvis and feels like I'm holding in a bowling ball!! I repeat....next week...7 more days to finish up loose ends at work, around the house...you know all those little items left that keep rolling from one to do list to the next :)

But...of course...she is on her own agenda!! Dr. Spoon performed our normal exam and not only have I dilated to 3 1/2 cm but she, as we expected, is very low.
Dr. Spoon proceeded to grab a pair of latex gloves and threw them at Matt and said, "It's time to have a baby!"
I have never seen Matt turn white quite like he did in the doctor's office today! hahaha
Dr. Spoon said "Not now Matt...but Wednesday!!"
What????!!!!! Wednesday????!!! Really!!!!!
Sooo......we set off to Dr. Spoon's desk to call Summerlin Hospital to schedule an inducement!

They set an appointment for Wednesday, January 30th at 4:00pm...and I have to admit it was honestly the strangest appointment I have ever set.
"Yes mam, what do you have available on Wednesday...to have a baby? 4:00..great! We'll see you there!!" hahaha
It didn't go quite like that but that's what I was imagining the woman on the other end speaking to Dr. Spoon sounded like.
So, it looks like we've got a date with The Bump!

We're both in shock a bit over the news that we are going to have a baby in less than 48 hours. Our lives will forever be different....better....in such a short time. Instead of rushing home to finish all of those to do list items though, Matt and I decided to spend time together...enjoy dinner....and one of our last dates pre-baby!

We are more excited than either of us could put into words...we are going to meet our daughter in two days!!!!

3 Weeks Left and Counting!

37 Weeks!

Jenny & Jack due in March, Matt and I due in February, and Andrea & Christian due in August!!

Jack & Jenny's Baby Shower!

Happy Full Term Baby! We have officially met the "full term" point in our pregnancy and it is such a wonderful feeling that the last 37 weeks have not only flown by but our little girl has grown healthily and quickly in such a short time! "Full term" means that if she arrives now, her lungs should be fully mature and ready to adjust to life outside the womb, even though our due date is still three weeks away. Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long. We are dying to meet her and I can't help but wonder about all of these little things...if she'll have hair that is more like Elvis or if she'll be sporting only peach fuzz!! Will her eyes be blue/green like mine or hazel like Matt's....or something completely different. I know no matter what that she will be the most beautiful thing Matt and I have ever set our eyes on.

When I think about the fact that I have been pregnant for 9 months and a week it is almost surprising because the majority of my pregnancy has seemed to fly by....the last weeks of the pregnancy have been the hardest...physically and emotionally. Everyone tells you this early on in the pregnancy but I really did not believe them because I have felt so fabulous the whole time and I couldn't imagine feeling badly!

This past weekend, Wendy, Stacie and I threw a coed baby shower for our good friends Jack & Jenny who are expecting a little girl on March 27th. It was so fun to watch them open all of the adorable pink goodies for their little one and watch all of the guys oooh and aaah over the tiny outfits...heehee. Christian & Andrea were also there, who are expecting August 25th, and we are all hoping they have a boy to keep the human race going. Everyone we know is having a girl!!!

Sleeping has become a circus act these days. I go to sleep with 4 pillows...throw two off by 12:30am on my first bathroom break....pull them back up and resituate at 1:20am on 2nd bathroom break and so on for the rest of the night at each hour. My last bathroom break is at 6:45am usually....then the alarm goes on 30 minutes later and it's up for work! Ugh....Fun routine :) The girls at work keep telling me how cute of a pregnant person I am and I truly appreciate their dishonesty right now because those dark circles under my eyes can only be covered up with so much powder!! Pretty soon I'll be wearing so much makeup that I'll look like a pregnant drag queen.

Our weekly doctor's appointments have gotten much more interesting and Matt and I really look forward to them. Yesterday, Dr. Spoon did a test called the Strep B test to make sure that I do not carry the Strep B bacteria that could be passed on to the baby. If I do carry this bacteria, they will have to administer antibiotics during my labor to protect the baby. During my exams, Dr. Spoon checks the position of the baby's head and my cervix to check on any progress. This week her head has dropped a significant amount...about an inch lower than last week...but my cervix has not dilated much more so we're still right around a 2! We also learned that she is in the 7 lb + range. I will spare you all of the other details that happen in the last weeks of pregnancy...those of you who have had babies you know what I'm talking about. I do think it's funny to explain these things in detail to my hubby just to get a reaction...hahahaha...Barf!

Dr. Spoon would like to watch us for another week or so more and if I haven't gone into labor within that time they will most likely induce me around 39 weeks. The reason to induce is mostly due to her size...he said he would rather me not have a record breaking size child....thanks Doc I appreciate that :)

So, for now, Matt and I are anxiously awaiting her arrival right now. Each day and night we either wake up or go to sleep wondering if today's the day that we'll rush to grab our bags and head to Summerlin Hospital. We're as ready as we'll ever be....and we're almost done with our first journey to become parents!!

Cathleen's Fifty & Fabulous Bday Party!

Soon-to-be Parents!
Who says white (pregnant) girls can't dance??!!

The boys!

Spending time with Great Grandma Ball

It's not a Channel party without Patron!

Jenn, Greg & Alison

Our toast "50 Things We Love About Cathleen"...

made her smile, cry, and...

...laugh!

Happy 50th Grandma CeCe!!

The toasting crew!

The Bump and I with my Mom....Grammy!

Great Grandpa and Grandma Ball!

What a night! We had so much fun celebrating the Birthday Girl!

36 Weeks Left and Counting!

36 Weeks!!

di·la·tion –noun
1.the act of dilating; state of being dilated
2.the widening or stretching of an opening or a hollow structure in the body.

Who would have known that this handy little word that Matt and I learned in our "Prepared Childbirth" class could send us into such a frenzy! Yesterday was my 36 week prenatal appointment with Dr. Spoon. Matt and I were anticipating this appointment very much since my body and pregnancy symptoms have changed so much in the last few weeks and we had some questions about some of the aches and pains I have been having! I was pretty sure that I had been having some mild (and some not so mild) contractions, especially during the night. Dr. Spoon proceeded with my exam and not only did he exclaim "Whoa!" but he followed it up with "That's definitely her head!" Ummmmm.....what???!!! That's right, our little girl is on the move and headed toward the light at the end of the tunnel...and because of this, I am fully dilated to two centimeters already! This, of course, shocked the heck out of us because my due date is still four weeks away. Thankfully, she will be considered full term this coming Sunday at 37 weeks which calms our worry and nerves tremendously.

Matt and I came home and suddenly we were in "Oh my gosh, we may only have a week or two before this happens" mode. Matt was in the bathroom packing his "Dad Bag" for the hospital....I was washing her changing pad cover, receiving blankets and refolding clothes (of course)....and shortly thereafter we were both perched on the couch with our Ipods putting our labor/baby playlist together for the hospital so she can come into the world to a mellow Jack Johnson...or Mommy's faves...Janis Joplin, the Doors or some Hendrix :)

Her size has seemed to even out a bit. Our appointment showed that I am measuring 36 cm from pelvic bone to the top of my uterus which is right on for her age. She 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. She is swallowing both of these substances, along with other secretions, resulting in a blackish mixture, called meconium, will form the contents of her first tar diaper.......looking forward to that!!

We were so excited to call our family and give them the news last night. I am a little in shock that she could be here at anytime and I'm petrified I am going to miss my labor signs....even though EVERYONE that has had a baby says that there is NO way for me to miss my labor signs :) So, this week I will take it easy....no long walks (advice from my brother whose wife went into labor after a walk around the block) no stress and a lot of anticipation that Matt and I will be meeting our daughter for the first time...very soon.

We will, of course, keep you all updated. Please keep us in your prayers that she will arrive when the time is right so that we have a healthy little baby to hold in our arms!

All Our Love...XOXO

5 Weeks Left and Counting!

35 Weeks!!

Yum...sparkling cider!!

Am I blending in with the boozers??!!

Happy New Year...brrrr!!!

Andrea & Christian who are expecting in August!

The Girls!

Matt and Kyle

Christian & Matt.....the future "Dad's Club"

New Years dinner with Jeremy & Francesca at Hamada

First and foremost, Happy New Year Everyone!! I hope everyone had a safe and wonderful New Year celebration. I'm not sure about you all but the year seems to have flown by! I just can't believe it is 2008 and what seemed like a lifetime away...is suddenly here. Almost a month until our due date!!

We had planned to finish all the last minute details the first week of January so we wouldn't have to worry just in case our little bean decides that her timing is earlier than ours! So, the hospital bags are packed...and her nursery is done! It was a very strange feeling packing my hospital bag and getting together her little onesies, receiving blankets and take-home-outfit (she has 2 just in case and 3 pairs of booties...a girl can never have too many booties to choose from for her special take-home-outfit, right??!!) It's just so exciting to be packing a bag that the next time I open it...will most likely be after her birth! Matt did some electrical work in the nursery and installed the smallest and cutest little ceiling fan as well as doing some last minute touch up paint and decorating. It has turned out to be such a cozy little room...it's perfect for her.

Matt has been so amazing throughout my pregnancy and I have to give it to him for being so patient and understanding in the last few weeks. I tend to laugh at the really dramatic pregnant women who think that the husbands don't go through a thing since WE are the ones who are carrying the baby and all. Not true. They go through a heck of a lot because quite frankly at times lately, Matt has NOT had Mrs. Sunnie Dee Channel for his wife but rather Mrs. Jekyll and Hyde! I have to admit, when everyone told me that the hardest part of your pregnancy is the last 8 weeks, I kind of brushed it off thinking...it can't be that hard. Reality check!! It's hard. The baby is growing so quickly that your body has a hard time adjusting for the extra pound she is gaining per week or so! My rib cage feels like someone has done a Mike Tyson on it during the middle of the night and the rest of my body either feels like it is going to explode at any minute or just swell up and I'll float away! I mean, my toes were chubby before....but now...well let's just say I'm glad I can't look down and see them anymore!! On top of that, I have literally cried 4 times in the last two days...what the??!!! I'm not really sure what any of the 4 reasons were but poor Matthew was the receiver of my wrath two times and I'm sure he didn't know what in the world to say or do with the crazy hormonal insomniac of a person in front of him!!

We did have a busy week with the end of the holidays and the last of our party planning. We spent New Years Eve at our friends Wes & Amber's home. It was mellow and so nice to just spend time relaxing with all of the wonderfully good people we get to surround ourselves with. It was absolutely freezing but we had a great view of the fireworks on the strip. We found out that our friends Christian & Andrea are expecting in August so I even had another prego friend to hang out with the entire night while we watched everyone else get competitive with the flippy cup game! Following New Years, we have been planning a Fifty & Fabulous birthday celebration for Matt's Mom which was this last Saturday. We had about 175 people come to celebrate her 50th including Matt's Uncle Ken & Aunt Linda from FL, his cousins Brandon & Chris and even his grandparents from Texas who just celebrated their 63rd Anniversary. We all had SO much fun! I even got jiggy on the dance floor with my hubby...although Jenn was trying to pull me out on the dance floor for Sir Mix Alot's "I Like Big Butts" song. That would have been really hot. I'm sure everyone at the party would have loved to see that :)

All in all, we ended the year and started a new one with a bang!
Good friends, good family, and a whole lot to look forward to in the coming weeks. This year is going to be amazing and full of surprises but we are ready and excited for everything life blesses us with this year.

Happy 2008...XOXO Sunnie & Matt