Well... a little about me...I am a 20 year old college student who is trying desperately to finish up her AA before I have this little baby and don't ever want to go back :/ My husband and I have been married for almost 2 years. Our 2 year anniversary is on July 22 and our baby is due the 23 so... hopefully he doesn't come on our anniversary...but it's a good present none the less. My husband and I live in Salem Oregon with 5 cats. They are all female so my husband was thrilled to not be surronded completly by girls, since we're now bringing a son into the equation.

ok I know this isn't a preggo pic but I love this pic of one of our cats. Her name is Sky. She's such a cutie!

These pics are me at 19 1/2 weeks

Me at 23 1/2 weeks

Me at 27 1/2 weeks, taken on my birthday

31 1/2 weeks

pics of me at 35 1/2 weeks. I can't believe how much I've grown! Look at all that mess in the background, we're moving!! Sorry for the stupid face in the second pic, I'm not very photogenic!

ok here's pics at just about 37 weeks. Sorry for the bra and undies shot, not very appealing I know. does it look like he dropped at all??

Ok all these above pics are 38 1/2 weeks, now I can tell he's for sure dropped :) shouldn't be long now!

so in these pics i'm 1 day overdue!! I'll be getting induced in two more days! I'm so excited. I'll be sad to loose my tummy but much happier to see my baby boy!

Here's some U/S pics of my little boy Jamison David. These were taken at 20 1/2 weeks

Yay a little boy! Daddy was soooooo happyHe's smiling :) :)

My favorite one cuz he's waving to us :)

Pregnancy Survey
About You
Name?:	April
Age?:	almost 20!
Height?:	5'
Pre-pregnancy weight?:	140
About The Father
Name?:	Carl
Age?:	23
Height?:	5'6
Are you still together?:	happily married, almost 2 years!
About Your Pregnancy
Is this your first pregnancy?:	yes
When did you find out you were pregnant?:	Nov 25
Was it planned?:	no
What was your first reaction?:	noooooo freakin wayyyyy
Who was with you when you found out?:	me myself and I
Who was the first person you told?:	my mom (hubby wouldn't answer his phone)
How did your parents react?:	they were happy
How far along are you?:	almost 26 weeks
What was your first symptom?:	cramps believe it or not
What is your due date?:	July 24 2007
Do you know the sex of the baby?:	BOY BOY BOY!!!!
If so, what is it?:	ummm
Have you picked out names?:	yes
If so, what are they?:	Jameson David Miller (that might change though we don't know yet)
How much weight have you gained?:	12 pounds, not too shabby
Do you have stretch marks?:	on my sides yes
Have you felt the baby move?:	the question is when haven't I felt the baby move!!
Have you heard the heartbeat?:	yes
About the birth
Will you keep the baby?:	of course
Home or hospital birth?:	hospital
Natural or medicated birth?:	MEDICATED (i'm not crazy!!)
Who will be in the delivery room with you?:	my hubby my sister and hopefully my best friend whom I've known since birth
Will you breastfeed?:	Yup
Do you think you'll need a c-section?:	I hope not, I'm pretty small framed but we'll see...
Will you cry when you hold the baby for the first time?:	who knows, I'm sure I will
What's the first thing you might say to him/her?:	I love you
Would you let someone videotape the birth?:	no, that's weird lol
Are you excited about the birth, or scared?: Both

I know you were hoping we weren't going to say this, but don't expect this baby to come early. Your baby is nice and comfy tucked away in your womb and has no interest in joining the rest of the world. We predict your baby will be born after its due date. Your baby will most likely be born in the morning. Justmommies predicts that your baby will weigh approximately 6.8 pounds and that your labor will be about 15 hours long.

July 4~

I thought I was in labor but wasn't!! GRRRR false alarms suck! I had been having really bad pain in my lower back/lower abdomen since about noon. At like 10 I was over at a friend's house watching fireworks and they got unbearable. I was crying and trying to walk and had to walk all hunched over I was having contractions right on top of the other. I was like "is this the real thing?!?" My husband took me to the hospital (after he finished his beer and cigarette which made me want to stab him...) and they admitted us. They put on the contraction timing belt thingy and said that I was for sure having them. They needed to get a straight strip of the baby's heartbeat for 20 mins and he was so active they kept having to readjust and readjust. Eventually the nurse just had to hold on the monitor manually and move it when he moved. When she checked me for dialation she said i was only at a 1 1/2 and that my cervix was still long and thick but soft. So after a while the contractions fizzled out and I went home....how disheartening!!

July 6~

I had a dr. appt today and I had her check me even though I was just checked a couple days ago, to see if I had progressed any. She said I was still at a 1 1/2 but my cervix had gone from being barely effaced at all to 60%!! YAY! She also said his head was almost all the way engaged and the other day the nurse said it wasn't engaged yet. So he's moving along quite nicely! I also found out I tested positive for Strep B :( but it's no biggie just some antibiotics in the IV when I go in, as long as they don't give me pennicilyn cuz I'm allergic to it. After the check I bled quite a bit it kinda freaked me out because I also lost some mucus plug but the bleeding stopped after a couple hours. Baby is moving around great so I don't think I have anything to worry about.

July 7~

7-7-07 wouldn't it be awesome if our babies were born today!!?? (of course I'm only referring to those of us that are full term, it wouldn't be awesome if you were only like 20 weeks or something!) Only 16 days til my baby's due date but I want him now. I'm gonna swim and walk a lot today. I'm also gonna try to find some Red Raspberry leaf tea ;)

July 13~

So I had my weekly dr. appt today. She said I am now 90% effaced and still 1 1/2 cm dialated. She suggested having sex to get labor going. We've been trying! It's just so dang uncomfortable at this point!! lol. Also she estimated the baby weighs 7 1/2 to 8 lbs. already! EEP! And all of a sudden said I have a narrow pelvis. Even though this same dr. plus two other ones in the past said I have a roomy pelvis! GRR! I just don't know what to think! She said I may need a C section :( I'm soooo scared I just want a normal birth! I asked about being induced and she said that they won't let me go over a week over my due date without inducing. So that puts at least a time limit on it, that before August 1 my boy will be in my arms! (I just hope he's not like 10 lbs. by then!!!)

July 20~

I had my dr. appt today. Nothing new. Everything's the same. I whined and moaned and begged him to set a date to induce because my baby is suppositively large and because my best friend is here from Arizona and will only be here til Thursday and is here to meet my baby! He was nice but explained there was no medical reason to induce and inducing increases the risk of c sections... I was like I DON'T FREAKIN CARE IF I HAVE TO THROW THIS BABY UP JUST GET HIM OUT!!! of course i didn't say that but that's what I was thinking! So he said to make an appt for Monday (my due date) and said he'd check me again then and if I'd progressed enough then he'd induce Tuesday morning, and he also explained that induction doesn't always mean the baby will actually come then. But I want him to at least try!! So I will keep my page updated and let everyone know how things are looking for Monday, but I'm not getting my hopes up!

July 22~

Early this morning at around 2 am I started getting contractions. They started out at 4-5 mins apart and weren't super strong but because of how close together they were I felt I should go in, so I woke up the hubby and went in. They said I was at a 3 and to walk around for an hour and see if I would dilate more, well they checked me again and NO DILATION! So they left me contracting for a while and then said to walk around for another hour, and I did and came back and I was still at a 3. By about 9 am they sent me home. I actually managed to sleep. When I finally got up later that day I was still having contractions and that night they were about 2 mins apart but still not very strong! I walked around and then later had sex to make them stronger, BUT NOTHING HAPPENED!!! OMG!! I don't know what's wrong with me! Now it's the 23rd and I'm not even getting contractions at all. I have a dr. appt today and last appt he said he'd induce Tues morning if I had dilated at all, and I have so hopefully they'll induce tomorrow. I'll repost after the appt.

July 23~

So I went in for the appt. I am the same dilated and effaced as I was yesterday. I had high blood pressure so the doc sent me downstairs for some tests and an ultrasound...which was cool since I haven't seen him since he was 20 weeks! I unfortunately couldn't see his face though cuz he was facing the ground :( but it's good to know he's in the right position. They took a catheter urine sample (OUCH!) and some blood. They forgot about me and my husband so it took like two and a half fucking hours to get the U/S. Everything looked fine so the doc gave me the option of being induced that night or waiting til Thursday to see if I'd progressed anymore or if I'd just go into labor on my own. I was starving and knew they weren't gonna let me eat til after I had the baby (which could take a day or more) so I opted for Thursday. So i'll be having my little boy 7-26 or 7-27!!! I'm so excited and scared at the same time! Wish me luck!

BIRTH STORY~

So I went in to be induced at 7 am on 7-26. I was having some contractions when I went in and they monitored them for a while and the doc said he believed I was going into labor on my own because they were pretty regular. I told him I didn't think so because I got regular contractions like these all the time and had 2 false alarms because of them! But he made me get up and walk for like an hour and checked me again and my cervix had dilated a little more, I think it was at almost a 4 at this point and I was at a 3 when I came in. The baby's head was in a -4 position, clearly he wasn't engaged at all! So for a long while there was getting up and walking and doing the birthing ball and tons of doctor checks. Eventually by 7 pm, 12 hours after I was SUPPOSED to be induced I was still at a 4, and the doctor finally decided to start my petocin. So he did and my contractions gradually got stronger, by 2 am I was crying for the epidural, by this point I had dilated to a 5. So I got the epidural, which was a really creepy feeling btw. I went pretty numb and was finally able to sleep. The doctor woke me up to break my water right around then. After a little while of sleeping my sister left to go home and take a shower and my husband was asleep in the chair next to me. At about 4:30 am I woke up to nurses running in the room and telling me to roll over on my other side. They were being frantic and one ran out of the room to get the doctor. I was really freaked becuase I had no clue what was going on. Apparently the petocin was working too well and I had 6 contractions bam bam bam all on top of one another giving no time in between to get oxygen to the baby and his heart rate had plummeted to the 60's! The doc came in and turned off the petocin and put me on an oxygen mask andhis heart rate went back up. He checked me again I was still at a 5, and the baby was now in a negative 2 position but still not engaged. He said he would give it another hour and if nothing had changed he would prep me for a c-section! I was so scared I prayed something would change...but it didn't. At about 5:30 am the doc checked me then left the room to prepare the paperwork for the c-section. I was crying and breathing really hard. My sister called my mom and my husband called his mom and they both headed to the hospital. I don't think I've ever been so freaked in my entire life. They wheeled me into the room and I heard someone give the time of 6:09 am. I could hear my heartbeating. My husband kissed me goodbye and waited out in the hall while they prepped me. So the anestiologist started the medication thru my epidural to make me go numb. They put up the curtain. All of a sudden without any warning the doctor started to cut me open, I couldn't feel it really but I could feel something because I felt some pulling. The nurses started moving around really fast, everyone seemed frantic. I had no idea what was going on I just squeezed my eyes shut and started to cry. One of the nurses went to get my husband. He seemed REALLY freaked like he was going to pass out when he came in, at the time I didn't know why... There was lots of tugging and pulling and pushing and I felt them pull the baby out cuz it felt like this great heavy weight was out and I felt empty. But i didn't hear any crying. I was like why isn't he crying?? Why the hell don't I hear him crying? My husband just kept telling me it was ok and so did the anestiologist. Probably about 2 minutes later, though it seemed like 2 hours, I heard him crying from the other room. I guess what had happened was he had his legs all caught up in the umbilical cord and his heartrate plummeted again. That's why the doctor just went right in. When they had Carl come in I was already cut open with my stomach pulled up and my husband saw all of it with no warning, he later told me he almost lost his footing and passed out. My baby had taken a breath while he was still inside me and therefore was full of fluids and couldn't breathe. They had to suction him for a while then came that beautiful cry. I guess his 1 minute apgar score was a 2! AHHH! but his 5 minute was a 7. He just needed a little help. His oxygen wasn't doing so well so they had daddy go off to see him and then while they were stiching me up they brought him to me, this was about 20 minutes after he was born. He wasn't breathing that well so I could only look for a minute and cry and give him a kiss. He was taken to the NICU and he's been there ever since. My husband and I have been staying there ever since, 9 days now. He is slowly getting better, he just has fluid in his right lung, which is slowly being absorbed. The doctor says sometime mid this week he should go home if all is well. But if the fluid doesn't go down there's some talk of a possible surgery. I'm praying to God that doesn't happen. I am so lucky to be a mom and my baby is so beautiful. I breast feed him and although it's hard with all the wires stickin out everywhere I love it so much. He's strong and can already lift his head for long periods of time. This is the first night I've gone home and it's sad that he's not here with me. So that's all for now. I'll update in a few days! (wow, i wrote a novel!)

~April