Three months has passed since I had my little baby princess!  I can't believe how much she's grown and changed!  So much has happened that I don't know how to put it all in this journal.  I don't know where to start. 

Well, I guess I should start with the delivery.  I was induced on January 23rd, but after 24 hours of labor they had to cut me open and take her out.  She was born on January 24, 2008.  She weighed 7lbs. 12.5 oz and was 19 inches long.  Apparently, she was not going to let me choose her birthday for her... ha!  We were going to leave on Saturday, January 26, but she was jaundiced so we had to stay an extra night so she could be under a billie light.  We went home the morning of my birthday, January 27!  Our time in the hospital was difficult.  I was hurting from the c section and I was having trouble breastfeeding; she wasn't latching on right. 

When we went  home, my problems with breastfeeding continued and I cried everyday.  I finally got a nipple shield to help her latch on but she was constantly hungry because my milk wasn't coming in.  I felt like such a failure and depression hit hard.  Her two week doctor's appt went well, but my breast milk was not satisfying her and she had not gained enough weight.  She should've been back at her birth weight of 7lbs. 12 oz (babies lose some weight after they are born), but she was only 7lbs. 4oz.  I felt so horrible!  Well, at least she had grown an inch and was 20 inches long.  So I supplemented even more for a week and she gained more weight.  I spent a week (when she was 2 weeks old) at Chris's parents while he was out of town because I was not handling things well.  He was away from home for most of February which didn't help matters. 

Her doctor's appointment after my week at the in laws (when she was 3 weeks) turned out better; she had gained a pound in a week and a half, and was 8 lbs 4oz.  He said that if I wanted to continue breastfeeding that I could let up off of the formula and see if she breastfeeds better.  Well, I had had such a bad week of breastfeeding the first week that I hadn't planned on doing that, but all of a sudden she seemed so content with breastmilk that I figured I could try.  Well, a month later at her next doctor's appointment, she had only gained 4 ounces; she was 8 lbs 8 oz and 21 inches long.  She was two months at that appointment and also got her first set of immunizations. 

SO I had to move to focusing more on bottlefeeding than breastfeeding which upset me again.  My milk just wasn't coming in right or didn't have enough calories for her or whatever... but she needed formula.  At her next appointment, a week later, the scale read 9lbs 8 oz.  She had gained a pound!  I was so happy and excited.  Well, she is 3 months and a week now and she is doing well!  She is probably over 10 lbs now but I'm not sure.  I measured her recently and she is 22.5 inches long.  She eats a 8 oz bottle per feeding, four times a day.  Well, this journal entry has been focused on her physical health and weight gain.  I will write another journal about the milestones she has reached.

Well, I'm 37 weeks now which is considered full term.  She is due in three weeks, but she is already ready to come.  I'm feeling the pressure low down in my pelvis; I'm peeing every half hour or so; I have Braxton Hicks contractions; and I'm uncomfortable no matter if I'm sitting, standing, walking, or laying down.  I'm so ready to have this baby; too bad my family is still in Indonesia until the 13th.  I am hoping she comes soon after her daddy's birthday which is the 13th.  Chris was supposed to go out of town for drill this weekend, but thankfully his commander thought it was best he stay as close to me as possible.  So they had him stay and work at the armory in town instead.  Thank God his commander is female (hehe).  I had my ultrasound and non stress test this past Thursday.  She is still hiding her face during the ultrasound (stubborn little girl wants to be a surprise...ha!).  The lady doing the ultrasound once again said that Arielle is in the position to come... down low and facing my back.  The non stress test went fine, and she is moving around just fine; her heartbeat is good too.  My blood sugar is staying stable as well.  So everything is going the way it should.  The nurse practitioner, Terri, said that next week they will start measuring my cervix to see how much it's dilated.  I am excited.

I am also just unsure what to do.  I want her to wait until my family can come up, but I also want her to come already!  So there's part of me that wants to walk more to encourage labor, but the other part wants to just kick my feet up and relax.  It is healthier though to walk more and makes the labor easier so that is probably the best thing to do (even though there is more than one part of me that just wants to lay down or sit back and relax... ha!).  I walk around the house some and sometimes head out to my favorite store, Hobby Lobby, just to get some walking in.  I've been reading up on labor and also how to take care of a newborn so that I will feel more prepared.  Anxiety and fear are lessening the more I research stuff... and excitement heightens!  Well, that's all I've got for now.  I'll update again after my next ob appointment.

Wow, it's been a while since I updated this journal.  Not much has been going on with my pregnancy.  The eighth month of my pregnancy was pretty normal.  My blood sugar has been doing well, and I had a blood test to test the average of my blood sugar.  It came up good so I don't need to be on insulin and have been controlling it with diet.  I've been going to ob appointments every week and at each appointment I get an ultrasound, a non stress test, and a visit with the doctor.  Arielle has been hiding her face during the ultrasound so its been hard to get good pictures.  During the non stress test I pretty much lay on a bed with monitors on my belly that record her heartbeat and my contractions... plus I have to push a button every time I feel her move.  At my last appointment, last Thursday, she was so down low in me that the lady doing the ultrasound had a hard time seeing her and getting a measurement of the head and also told me she didn't think I'd make it until my due date.  She could only get a picture of her foot.  She did manage to get a measurement of the head (and also the body) and determined that Arielle was 5 1/2 lbs.  She said Arielle would grow 1/2 lb every week now and would be 7 1/2 lbs if I made it to my due date... Arielle is probably about 6 lbs right now which is a good weight.  During my visit with the doctor, she mentioned that I had had two contractions.  I hadn't really noticed them and she asked if my stomach tightened.  It had but I had thought contractions would be painful.  Well, she said the stomach tightening was a contraction.  And I've noticed this week that I've had a few of those.  Also, I've noticed this week that Arielle is pretty low inside me; I can feel a heaviness in my lower pelvic region and some discomfort.  It is hard to sit, stand, or lay for too long nowadays.  Chris has been dealing with my lack of sleep at night too... poor hubby!  I'm scared of going into labor, but happy and excited too.  My moods change so easily nowadays... I'm happy one minute and upset for no reason the next. 

Chris and I have been getting the house ready.  We bought her a swing that sort of glides the way a mother's arms do when rocking the baby.  It was actually the most expensive swing, but it's worth it.  It can be used as a bouncer because the seat comes off.  The swing can also work with the car seat so that when we are traveling we can just load the base of it in the car and put the car seat in it... or if she falls asleep while riding in the car, it won't wake her up to just put her in the swing.  The nursery is turning out more pink than I'd intended, but I like pink and Chris doesn't mind it anymore.  We have some belly pictures in the nursery of me and one of Chris in uniform with his head on my belly... I love the last picture; it's my favorite.  We have so many girl's clothes because Chris's parents came up the weekend before Christmas and gave us about five garbage bags full.  A couple at Chris's dad's church thought they were getting a granddaughter but got a grandson instead... so they gave us all of the girls stuff they had bought which was nice of them.  It is SO MUCH though.  Wow.  We've got everything pretty much ready for Arielle to be here.  We even have the bag for the hospital ready with outfits/sleepwear for me, outfits/sleepwear for her, and a nursing bra.  I was thinking last night that I should probably put a receiving blanket in there for Arielle.  We also bought a Brest Friend pillow which I like better than the Boppy because it is supposed to provide more back support, and I need more back support.  It has a strap and cushion that goes around my back to hold the pillow securely in place while providing back support, and the Boppy doesn't have that.  Chris was surprised at the breastfeeding instructions it came with because I guess he expected breastfeeding to be an automatic thing that took no training or skill... hehe... he knows better now.  Well, that's all I can think of for now.  Our holidays were pretty much spent getting ready for our new arrival :).  Just a couple more weeks or so and she'll be here!  I'm so excited and happy and scared!

Well, I've been watching my diet and monitoring my blood sugar for a little over a week now.  This past Wednesday I had a follow up appointment with the nurse practitioner, Terri, who told me that I am doing well with my blood sugar, and she also set up an appointment on Dec 5 for an ultrasound and a stress test to make sure the baby is doing well.  Also on Wednesday, my sister, Stephanie, came into town on the Greyhound for Thanksgiving !  On Thursday, I cooked a dinner and managed to limit how much sugar I ate.  My blood sugar went off a little, but the nurse practitioner said that's ok every once in a while.  Chris put up a window valance in the nursery (since he is tall) and then the three of us (me, Chris, Stephanie) started putting up a wallpaper border in the nursery.  I mostly held the wallpaper while they figured out how to get it straight (we put it halfway down the wall instead of up at the top) and how to stick it down.  We got almost halfway around the room before we ran out of wallpaper.  Later, Steph did some homework and Chris and I watched Incredibles.  The next morning Stephanie had to catch the bus home .  It was a great Thanksgiving!  I did miss the rest of my family though, but I'll see them when Arielle is born!  Chris and I just finished putting more wallpaper border around the room.  It looks great and I am so happy and excited.  We still need the crib, but we'll get that soon. 

I measured myself and I grew a couple more inches in the past couple weeks and I am happy about that.  I think I look good (even if there is a friend of mine that keeps saying how big I am and commented on how much bigger I am than she was when she was pregnant with her first).  I realized today that I am now 31 weeks pregnant which means that I am almost eight months pregnant.  I'm so shocked!  My little girl will be here soon!!