Well Ain't It Good to Know that You've Got a Friend

I would like to introduce you to our good friend Rebecca aka BEX.

Isn't she a beauty!

Ryan and I have known Bex for... well quite a while now. I think I met her about 7 years ago and Ry got to know her a little later.

She has been one of my best friends, confidants, personal entertainer and bridesmaid (the pic is from a fitting session before our wedding).

Expecting our first baby and being on the other side of the world from all our family and close support people has been a source of anxiety for some people over the last few months. I think I had just been psyching myself up for Ryan and I 'going it alone' (in terms of not having those close family supports here) Ryan on the other hand was quietly worried about me being at home alone. As he is self-employed it is quite tricky for him to take time off around the due date (especially as bubs could be early or up to 14days late). He's already taking 3 weeks off in Aug when our mums are here (HAVE I EVEN MENTIONED THE FACT THAT OUR MUM'S ARE COMING!!!).

So Ryan was worrying, as were our parents, and I was just blissfully unaware!

And that was when God decided to insert Bex into the picture. She has just completed a stint in Norway with a group called Youth With A Mission (YWAM) and actually visited us with two others and spent Christmas with us last year. She has decided that Norway, and the opportunity to share God's love through the mission of YWAM, is calling again and so she will soon be heading back there.

To our delight she is going to bypass Nottingham for a little over two weeks to stay with us!

She arrives on our due date (5th July) and will leave for Norway around the 24th. Our good friend is truly an answer to prayer. Not only do we love Bex like a sister, she is one of the most fun loving people I know. She's fab with children - before she went to Norway she was helping our friends Ruth and Brendon as they had just added twin boys to their family. And before that she worked with autistic children. So I will feel completely safe leaving her with our new baby and going shopping. haha not! We'll all go shopping! Oh and did I mention she's a great cook!! I'm going to request she bake her secret-recipe-chocolate-cake every week!

So a big THANKS to the Big G for sending Bex our way. We will be forever grateful.

Can't wait to see you Bex! 38 days to go!

(oh my goodness! that means 38 days till we're due! ahhhhhh! and at the same time YIPPEEE!)

34 Weeks

Well the baby bump continues to grow as per pregnancy guidelines.

We had an appointment with the midwife this week and so got to meet another cheery part of the community midwife team. So far we're delighted with the midwives here in Arnold, they've been bubbly and fab. Thank you God!

So results from that appointment

Weight: 74kg (that's 11kg deposited since pre-bubs days)

BP: 110/60

Fundal Height: 32cm = where it should be

Positioning: head down

Baby heart rate: Strong as an Ox!

Not sure what the actual rate was but it sounded fast enough.

Movement: Lots. I get elbows, heels and I'm guessing other body parts kicking me and pushing into the walls of my abdomen. It can get REALLY uncomfortable.

So all is well, the dream pregnancy continues.

The midwife gave us some info on breastfeeding which is really good so I've had a read of that. At the end of that day despite all the information and picture guidelines it's going to be a case of give it a go and see how you get on. Oh and persist, persist, persist!

This weekend I attended an antenatal class at the hospital we'll be having the baby at. Ryan was away at another soccer tournament so I went it alone. It was a good class and the midwife showed various short clips on video. Two births one of which was a water birth the other just an on the bed job. The whole room cringed as they showed the moment of crowning. It was funny to look around at all the guys faces and see their expressions. I'm sure they were all thinking "man I'm glad that's not going to be me!" and fair enough too. It does not look like the most enjoyable part of giving birth.

We talked through all the pain relief options again and the midwife also discussed varous positions and equipment for use to aide an active birth. I think I will make the mos of the birthing balls and pillows and bean bags. they seem to offer great support. I booked a TENS machine although Ryan may be able to get one. They're 15quid to hire and you pick them up at 38 weeks and return them at equivalent of 42 weeks. The midwife running the show did say that they have had very positive feedback from women who have used TENS. It does need to be used from the beginning in order to be effective and so a lot of mums put it on at home and just having some form of 'pain relief' seems to help keep them at home a little longer. So perhaps we'll give it a go.

Despite all the videos and instruments (for assisted delivery) we were shown I found myself coming away from the day very much at peace about the whole thing. I feel like I'm not placing any pressure on myself for things to go a certain way and I think that helps.

It was kinda strange driving up to the maternity ward and thinking about what the day is going to be like that we're actually going because we're in labour. A few of us joked about how they should get rid of the speed bumps on the roadway leading up to the labour suite entrance because surely you'll be uncomfirtable enough without your nervous husband driving over them at 80 mile/hr!

WORK

I've got 9 full days and two half days to go!

The job I'm doing is getting busier and busier actually and I think I'll be more than ready by the 13th June which is my first day of leave. I came home from work the other day and had a 2.5hr 'nap' it was bliss and I really should do that more often.

I've organised a night out with the girls from work for this weekend. So there's a bunch of us going out to dinner on the 2nd. It is going to be quite strange finishing up work really. Due to the maternty leave option I am taking I will be returning in about 12mths time but a whole year without work is strange to contemplate. I'm sure I will love every minute of it and fill it with all sorts of baby focussed woderful things.

NESTING

I'm not sure if I've hit this phase in pregnancy or not but, despite being tired and just needing to rest at times, I'm finding myself wanting to get the ironing done and cleaning the kitchen, getting washing out, organising baby bits. It hasn't got to an extreme state yet and I've not been on my hands and knees scrubbing the floor. I left that task to my lovely husband =) However I just can't seem to just sit still. There's a little sense of guilt I think at not doing. We're suh a 'doing' couple and so to be just still and chilling out is a little foreign. Although I think I cna slip a little more easily into this than Ryan can.

This week I even got back into the baking and much to my delight made a fab batch of cookies. Ever since we moved ot this new place I have not managed to pull of much decent baking. I was horrified one day to find out that Ryan had taken some slice I'd made to work. Normally I would give him a box to take and share but this batch was not good. Teeth pulling material even. and yet they so politely told me how wonderful it was.

I found this online about Nesting:

The nesting urge in pregnancy is thought to be caused by both biological and emotional factors.

Most females in the animal kingdom experience similar patterns of cleaning and preparation when they are pregnant. From birds to bears, female animals appear to have an intrinsic need to prepare ahead of time for their new arrival. It is believed that females are programmed to experience this nesting instinct in order to ensure that their offspring will be cared for properly after birth. By having your baby’s room ready, all her clothes organized, and her meals planned, you are ensuring that your baby will have the best chance for growth and survival after birth.

The nesting instinct probably also involves emotional components as well. Pregnancy is a time of intense hormonal fluctuations, and these changes can cause you to act in crazy ways! As your hormones settle down in the second trimester, you may feel increasingly energized and excited about your baby’s birth. This can incite many women to begin cleaning, organizing, and planning for their baby’s arrival.

So there you have it. However looking around the house at this present time the whole cleaning part of nesting obviously hasn't been too strong!

Well on that note and while my hubby isn't here I might go clean!

Ciao

Who ate all the pies?

Ryan's attempt to mimic my pregnant belly!

Pain Relief

So far we have had three antenatal classes. The third class was on pain relief options and so we talked about all the options from entonox, to pethidine, to epidural. I have thought about the different options from time to time and am not really making a firm decision about anything. I have decided that I would like to go through labour as intervention free as possible. I don't think that women who make it through labour without any form of pain relief are any more special or stronger (though in some cases I guess they are) than those that have all that is on offer. Despite this there is this desire in me to make it through as naturally as possible.

I'm not too keen on an epidural I think primarily because I don't really want a catheter and I don't think I want to have no feeling from waste down. And as much as epidurals can help to relax your muscles more this in turn can also mean you can add an hour to labour... eek! Isn't it long enough already? Having never had any opioids before I don't know how I'll take to pethidine. It might be nice for getting a little shut eye but I don't want to be totally out of it either.

So my plan...

Entonox - gas and air is pretty tame and can work wonders.

Ryan - my right had man and I will certainly take advantage of his smooth loving hands and get rubs downs.

Water - birthing pool if available (but not to give birth in or just hot shower. Bath while at home

Breathing - kinda essential anyway but I will endeavour to make it effective.

Having said all this at the end of the day if it gets too much I'll go with whatever makes me happy.

I wonder if it will come to this?!

I have however been thinking more lately about the role of prayer in labour. Having our baby is going to be one of the most amazing experiences of our lives. God has blessed us with this opportunity and there is not doubt that He will be with us (and already is) from that first contraction through to greeting our little bundle. God has never said that life was made to be cruisey and so I don't expect labour to be pain free but I do think that if I focus on Him then maybe I will feel His abundant love over the worst of the pain.

Emotions

I will quite happily admit (and Ryan will quite happily testify)to the fact that even before pregnancy I would be one to cry pretty easily. Plant me in front of a touching movie and I'll quietly hide the tears and try to cover up the quivering lip.

Pregnancy does seem to make this 'condition' even worse though. I haven't quite got to the point where adverts on t.v are making me cry but I am crying easily. Maybe the most pathetic is still to come!

I have found 'Baby Zone' on televsion. Care of cable I can watch three hours of baby programs one after the other! They follow women through the final stages of pregnancy and childbirth. Anyway the other day I burst into tears as I watched a father cry himself as he held his child for the first time. The emotion from such an event just oozes in goodness and joy and we can't wait to experience it. I think I will cry and if it's not from pain it will be from the shear joy, wonder and awe of putting a face to the name; of seeing the legs - no matter how long and skinny they are - that have been kicking me. I can't wait to have that baby smell filling the house - the nice ones!

Other than that I think I've been fairly mentally stable throughout. Ryan would describe me as 'Mostly stable'. I'm happy with that. I've had the usual bouts of irritability but then everyone has those every now and then. I did get a bit owrried the other day about what type of person I'm going to turn into during labour. On one of the forementioned programs I watch a wife snap at her husband for doing his best to sooth her with a cool flannel on her forehead. I don't want to turn into a horrible person in what should be the most incredible experience of ones life. When the male must feel so hopeless as it is it just doesn't seem fair to get snappy and horrible like that. I can but try. Ryan can report later on how it all goes.

So that's it on emotions. For good measure there is the odd bout of homesickness that still likes to show it's face but that hits both of us. Somedays we're ready to just buy a ticket and wing our way back to Aotearoa but that is just not going to happen at this point. Besides just as the midwife talked about how contractions are a series of peaks and troughs so are those grey feelings of homesickness and they pass.

33 Weeks down ... 7 to go.

WHAT's GOING ON WITHIN:

Baby is inhaling amniotic fluid to exercise his or her lungs.

Some babies have full heads of hair by now; others have only a bit of fuzz. Ryan's not sure but I don't think I was born with a full head of hair. Either way my conclusion is that it will be cute. No not just cute but VERY cute!

Your baby has a normal waking and sleeping pattern. Many times, your movement throughout the day will lull him or her to sleep; while you are inactive at night, it is a chance for him or her to be awake and active. You got that right! Far out! I think our baby is starting to enjoy a lot more awake time. Today at work I had numerous kicks that literally make me jump and this evening eating dinner mouthfuls were taken in the breaks between a kick under the ribs, perhaps a heel in one side and a punch on the other. Joy of joys. One thing is for certain, you baby have limbs that are working just fine. I hope your mind is just as active.

Your baby can listen, feel, and see. Excellent. Despite this, the child does not always understand. Like when I put on a nice but slightly stern voice and ask politely not to be elbowed/kneed/or kicked in 'that spot'.

I should do some more singing to the little one. Pick out my favourite tunes and hope he/she likes them as much as I do so that I can use them postpartum for that soothing effect.

The pupils of the eye can detect light and constrict and dilate. All the better to see us with my dear.

Your baby's lungs are almost completely matured. In other words: 'Ready to scream the house down' NOT!

Fat will continue to be deposited on your baby's body for protection and warmth. At our last midwife appointment - which i don't think I've mentioned - the midwife said our baby has long legs and needs to put on some weight. So fat deposits, Go For Gold! But remember it's summer soon and bubs will be fine with just a little less than requirements.

Your baby's skin color turns from red to pink. And if this baby is anything like his/her daddy - to brown with a little bit of sunshine.

By week 33 of pregnancy, you will have gained between 10 and 12 kilos from your pre-pregnancy weight. I neither confirm nor deny. Was too busy at work today to check my weight (no scales at home)
Your belly button may "pop" anytime from here on out. I just don't have much of a belly button any more now. It's flat. Maybe yet to pop.

Other symptoms of late pregnancy you may be experiencing:
Excessive tiredness I wouldn't say excessive but I did enjoy a two hour sleep this afternoon and am certainly all the more tired these days.

Confessions from the husband: Ryan confessed this week to being kept awake by yours truly. Apparently I am breathing rather heavily these days and it's enough to wake him. The cramps I wake up with also wake him. As I roll around groaning in pain and as my calf seizes causing intense pain his sleep it disrupted. So sorry honey.

I tell him that all these disturbances are for his own good because pretty soon it will be the sound of a whimpering/ screaming child that will be waking him rather that of his groaning, heavy breathing, tossing and turning whale-like wife. hehe

We both gave each other a bit of a horrified look as, at our antenatal class, the midwife mentioned how we would be getting by on 4hrs sleep soon. Poor Ry. I hope he's going to be able to function OK at work.

Braxton Hicks Contractions Nope don't think so

Pelvic aches (from the pressure of your baby). Yip

You may have strangely vivid dreams. Yeah I have been dreaming quite a lot lately and mostly they are pregnancy related.