Ava Louise Ball

I know this is a bit over due but we welcomed Ava Louise Ball into the world on Saturday the 4th of July at 9:21am weighing 7lbs and 6oz.

The delivery was a little bit of a nightmare... but she's here safe and sound now and that's what matters. :)

I started having really mild contractions on Tuesday the 30th late at night and figured that it meant baby was going to be here by Wedneday but unfortunately it just continued much the same throughout Wednesday and Thursday. By early Friday (1am) they were stronger and we decided to go to the hospital to find out what was going on. They said I was 2cm and sent me home where I'd be more comfortable because it was going to be a while before anything happened.

We ended up going back to the hospital around 6pm and they said I was 5cm and I should stick around because Baby was on her way.

After that it really started to get painful. By around 10 I was in agony and decided to take an epidural. Unfortunately they couldn't give me one for another hour and a half so they offered some pethadine which didn't seem to do anything for the pain but sent me off to la-la land and I really don't remember much that happened between then and the morning.

I do remember that the epidural didn't work completely though and I could still feel pain on the right side so they had to come in and do a second one which thankfully worked.

Unfortunately when it came time to push, the baby got stuck because she had her head facing up rather than her chin being tucked into her chest. They then took us into the opperating room where they tried to use the suction cup thing but it popped right off her head so they had to do an emergency c-section.

Since then I've just been recovering and trying to look after Ava. Graham was home most of the first week but he's been very busy this last week and hasn't been home much during the day. We've had his sister Jenni and mom here for the first week and the past week my parent have been here. It's been nice having the help, especially when it comes to making meals and changing the baby's diaper. My stomach is still quite sore so it's not very easy to move around the house yet. Hopefully soon though.

39 weeks down - 1 TO GO!

Erica had her baby! He was born June 25th at 6:21 pm and weighed 6lbs 3oz. Graham and I went to visit them in the hospital yesterday and he is so cute! So tiny! They named him Skylar Jackson Goncalves. It was kind of a strange coincidence that they gave him the middle name Jackson when he was born on the same day Michael Jackson died. Another weird thing was that apparently the guy who gave her the epidural's name was Michael Jackson. Maybe Skylar will be a little singer or dancer one day.

Poor Erica had a bit of a traumatic delivery though. She texted me at about 8:00am on Thursday saying she was having contractions and then texted me later saying her water broke so she was on her way to the hospital. I didn't hear from her again until the next morning when I asked if the baby had arrived yet and she said "Yes. Very tired. Will call later." I decided to leave her alone for a while so she could get some sleep and spend some time with the baby. Her husband phoned me later in the day and told me that she'd had a bit of a scare before the delivery because the baby's heart rate had dropped from 150something to 60 so they hooked her up to an induction drip to try and encourage the baby along. Somewhere along the line it was decided they needed to do an emergency c-section so she was rushed in for that and they delivered the baby a few minute later. Unfortunately during the process they knicked her bladder some how and now she has to be hooked up to a catheder for the next 10 days. Not fun.

When we went in to see them last night she could hardly move because of the pain from the c-section. They said she should be feeling better within a week though. It's sad because she can hardly hold the baby and she's struggling to feed him now too. He doesn't seem too interested in food either but I've heard that some babies are like that when they're born and others can't wait to eat.

He is really, really cute though and it was great to be able to meet him when he was just 24 hours old. :) I wish I'd remembered to take pictures!

As for me, nothing seems to be happening yet. I went a little bit crazy on Wednesday and painted the living room while Graham was at work. I think I might have been nesting. The colour that was in there has always annoyed me but for some reason on Wednesday I just couldn't take it anymore and I had a strange burst of energy so I went to the hardware store and bought a bucket of paint, came home and did the entire room myself. Graham was very surprised when he got home Thursday morning. I think it looks much better now and I'm very happy with it. Unfortunately it has me wanting to paint the rest of the house but I don't think I can take on a job that big at the moment.

It's very hot out today so of course my hands and feet have puffed up again. I really can't wait until they stop doing that. Baby is due in one week today which is kind of exciting :) I hope she's not late!

10 days to go!

I'm finally down to the last 10 days! :) Although I am aware that it still might be up to an additional 14 days after the due date before she's actually here... but I'm trying not to think about that.

I had my 38 week checkup yesterday and everything seems to be fine. I showed the midwife my puffy hands and feet and because everything else is normal (blood pressure and pee sample) she said it was perfectly fine. She even said that considering how far along I am, they don't look too bad. That made me feel a bit better.

Baby's heart rate was good, and every time she wiggled it would speed up, which is also normal apparently.

Unfortunately she said that although the baby's head is down, she's not really engaged. I guess that means she is a little bit, but not as much as she could be. Graham and I are going out and about today so I'll try and make sure I walk as much as possible to see if that helps.

Still haven't had any signs of baby's arrival yet so I have no idea how much longer it's going to be. Erica is due today and she's had a couple of signs so she might be having her baby very soon! :)

341 hours until Baby's due

15 days to go!!

I am definitely ready for this baby to come out. I'm not sure I can wait another two weeks! I feel like a whale. Or a pig actually. My hands and feet keep getting puffy and they look like hooves :( I hope that goes away once the baby is born.

Aside from the swelling in my hands and feet, nothing has changed. I haven't had any signs of labour at all yet.

I did have a huge panic attack in the middle of the night on Tuesday though. I woke up with stomach pains which made me freak out because it either meant I was having the baby, or I had eaten something I shouldn't have at the BBQ earlier that night. Turns out it was some dodgy food at the BBQ.

Who thinks this baby will be here before her due date?

24 days to go!

I decided to put up another picture of Fat Becky so here I am at about 36 and a half weeks. As of this Saturday the baby will be considered full term so she can come any time after that as far as I'm concerned!

I went to a pregnancy yoga class last night with Erica (she's due in 2 weeks.) It was harder than I thought it was going to be! All that bending and crouching can't be good for the baby but I guess it's fine if it's yoga specific to pregnancy. I'm not sure if I'm going to go back next week yet. I guess if Erica hasn't had her baby and is going to go I will but if she's not able to be there I don't really want to go by myself.

Anyway, I'm feeling pretty good today, not too heavy which is nice. I think the baby must be in a good position. I went to my 36 week checkup yesterday and everything seems fine. My hands are a little puffy but not severely. There was a student midwife there too and she measured my tummy. When she said '33cm' I almost had a heart attack. I was like "What?! How did I shrink a centimeter in 2 weeks??" So the main midwife came over and remeasured me and it was fine, I'm at 36cm, where I should be. The baby's head is engaged apparently, and they think she's on the left. I honestly don't know how they can tell what position the baby is in. I can't even figure out what it is that keeps jabbing me in the side. I think it might be an elbow, it feels quite hard sometimes.

Well, I've got a pile of wooden pieces on the floor in front of me that will supposedly turn into a rocking stand for the moses basket once I assemble it, so I think I'll get started on that now.
Wish me luck!

1 Month Left!

Yesterday was the 4th of June, which meant 1 month left until Baby's due date! I can't believe I'm already down to the last 4 weeks. The scarey thing is she could arrive any day now, and as long as I make it one more week I'm considered full term.

My next midwife appointment is on Tuesday, and I think after that one I'll be seen once a week until the baby is born (or forced to come out if she decides to be late.)

I finally got started on organising the baby's room today and hung up some of the wall decoration I bought several weeks ago. It still could use a few more pictures but I haven't really got money to spend on that kind of thing right now.

The rocking chair that my mom bought for me turned up yesterday and Graham assembled it for me. It's really comfortable and looks very nice. :) (Thanks mom!)

I just took some pictures of the almost finished room:

Rocking chair and stool from mom.

Graham's old Moses basket from when he was a baby. His mom made it up for us and knit that blanket as well.

Baby's first wardrobe

I feel better now that that's pretty much all finished. I've started packing my hospital bag as well. The baby's is done but mine still needs a few more things, most of which I can't really pack until it's time to go because I'm still wearing them or using them. I'll have to make a list of what I plan on adding to the suitcase though or otherwise I'll end up running out the door with nothing but pyjama's and flip flops!

38 days to go... Not that I'm counting.

Well I had my 34 week checkup yesterday (and I remembered to go!)
Everything seems to be going well. BP is good, tummy measured 34cm which is right on target, and baby's heart rate was 158 and very good according to the midwife. My next appointment is in 2 weeks. I can't believe how quickly the due date is coming up! Just over 5 weeks left to go. I'm getting really excited to meet this little girl :)

I'm a little bit worried that I might be underestimating just how often I'll need to change diapers... mainly because I just read something that said I can expect to change up to 50 a week. I'm not sure I even have 50 diapers in the house... Yikes.

I think I'll start putting my hospital bag together this week. Baby's going to be here before we know it so I should start getting prepared. Still waiting for the rocking chair to be delivered though, but once it is I should be able to finish up the baby's room.

Graham and I are no closer to agreeing on a name. In fact we've pretty much started over and I've been spending hours with random name generators to see if anything pops up that we like. So far I've found these to add to the list:

Isabella Louise Ball

Ava Louise Ball
Eva Louise Ball
Elise Louise Ball
Nicole Louise Ball
Olivia Louise Ball
Jessica Louise Ball

Maybe she'll be one of those? I think we'll just wait until she's born before we make a final decision.