In other news... (Rob)

... I had lunch at that new burrito place in Urbana by Five Points called Panchero's. It's a franchise and the burritos are like Chipotle with three differences:
1) They make your tortilla in front of you. They use a press to flatten a ball of dough into a circle. Then, they warm it on the grill.
2) When they've placed all the ingredients in your burrito, they stir it up so each bite is equal.
3) No lettuce. I missed the crunch.
I got spicy salsa and added jalepenos. I'm glad I'm not the one has to push soon!

Not much progress

Clearly this baby knows it should have had another ~3 weeks in utero.* I'm just 1-2 cm dilated and will shortly receive a second dose of cytotec. I was approved to do some pacing around so hopefully gravity can help a little bit. The doctor will be returning around 5 and maybe by then I'll be having stronger contractions and he can break my water at that time. So the plan is...
Pace for about 5 more minutes.
Have cytotec administered (it is a pill that is deposited in my cervix).
Lay in prone position while cytotec dissolves and to monitor baby.
Pace more.
Doctor checks again.
It will soon be 24 hours in this room. I am hungry and tired, but it is going to be ok.

*When this baby is older, it's going to think Rosalie has always been our favorite since she got an extra three weeks in the womb. Nothing a trip to Disney can't fix, I'm sure.

Free Diaper Bag

As many of you know, nursing Rosalie has been one of my greatest joys. We enjoyed nursing together until my recent bed rest orders. Preeclampsia can result in premature labor, so the nipple stimulation was not worth the risk. She was only nursing at bedtime and some mornings for just a few minutes in recent months, so she had very limited milk consumption and was virtually weaned anyway. I would not consider her fully-weaned yet, though, because even in recent days she would ask for "mama milk" when she was tired. We would have "mama cuddles" instead and she would snuggle up on my lap. I have been reading a book on tandem nursing, and that may be a reality in our household in a few days.
I never envisioned that I would nurse a toddler who could "ask for it," but that is the path I chose. I am well aware of the stereotype- i.e. Maggie Gyllenhaal's character in the movie Away We Go. Weaning is a process that I decided I wanted to be on Rosalie's terms, and it is where my heart led me.
While I am clearly a proponent of breastfeeding, I have made a point to try to not to push my preference on others. I know that breastfeeding does require a deep support network, and I will provide support to any nursing friends that may need it. I will also openly discuss my experience with expectant mothers, because I had such a pleasant one (don't get me wrong- there were many struggles, especially in the first 8 weeks). This is a fine line amidst a sensitive topic, and I hope I have not offended anyone along the way.
***
The hospital gives a free diaper bag to mothers: one for formula-fed babies and a different one for breast-fed babies. They are currently out-of-stock for the breastfeeding bag, and we have so many bags already (thanks to Thirty-One), so we respectfully declined the formula-fed bag. The nurse took a defensive stance, saying "I am not trying to push formula on you, but I want to offer you the free bag at least." I am guessing some have taken offense to the offer in the past. To continue the snobbery, we also turned down the Johnson & Johnson sample, as we use other less-toxic brands in our household :)

The doctor should be here soon to determine next steps!

Downtime

We have more "downtime" now before anything drastically changes, hence the frequency of posts. I am trying to relax through the noise of renovation and Rob typing away on his laptop. He is trying to finalize the website for our cottage.

My current nurse is even using this time to prep the baby warmer/bassinet that is in our room. She said, "Since we know a baby is coming, I can get prepared just in case things happen quickly!" We can hope!

I'm hoping that relaxing will allow my contractions to be more productive and bring on active labor faster. I will try to visualize my cervix relaxing as well, but I can only really visualize cartoon images of a cervix like I've seen in books. Ha ha.

Missing Rosalie

Rosalie is in good hands with her grandma Mimi while we're at the hospital. We are keeping her regular schedule, so she is at her school this morning. About 20 minutes after checking in last night, we already missed her. She brings so much joy to our lives, and here we are about to double it.

Do you think this pebble wall will ease the pain of contractions? I have started having a few manageable ones, and my doctor will be returning at noon to check my progress. He is likely to break my water at that time as well. Starting pitocin will depend on where things are at. I'm encouraged!

Wouldn't it be nice?

The maternity ward at our hospital is newly renovated, including this beautiful tub and a glowing pebble wall. I can enjoy the ambiance of the pebble wall (I'll have to upload that photo separately), but the complications this pregnancy have not afforded me the opportunity for a good soak, let alone a good walk around the ward to get things moving faster. Maybe next time!?!?

Baby Day? Maybe?

Here is a synopsis of what is going on- mostly to log the delivery journey...

After three weeks and three days of bed rest, Rob and I checked into the hospital last night (Wednesday) to start the induction process. Wednesday marked the 37 week milestone of reaching "full-term." After much discussion with my doctor, it was determined it was best to induce now, despite my preeclampsia remaining mild.

At 6pm last night, cervidil was administered in an attempt to ripen my "unfavorable" cervix. I slept considerably well thanks to some ambien, and Rob slept great. Just as if we were at home! :)

My cervix was checked again this morning, and there was noticeable progress, but not enough to start pitocin. Now a drug call cytotec has been administered and I'm feeling hopeful as the cramping has gotten a bit more intense.

In the delivery room next door, we can hear the wail of a newborn. The baby sounds like a seagull, but makes us both excited to hear our own baby's cry.

Maybe today!