girl talk

Baby Watch:Week 39

Baby Bradshaw is going to hold out for as long as possible! I went for my weekly doctor's visit this afternoon and heard an identical report as last time - 2 cm. dilated and almost 80% effaced. My doctor still thinks I could go any day, but mommy isn't holding her breath. If I don't go on my own this weekend they will induce me on Monday morning at 9 a.m. It was funny leaving the doctor's office today and not making an appointment for next week. Girly only has four more days to make up her little mind to come on her own accord. 

Thank you to all those who have sent me such encouraging e-mails. I have been so blessed by your care and prayers. Pray that baby decides to join us sometime before Monday's hospital visit. We will keep you updated...

Baby Watch Alert

No, no, nothing to report as of last night. We just wanted to inform you that whenever Janelle goes into labor we will be "live-blogging" the event. Don't worry, no graphic details! However, should she go into labor over the weekend or even in the middle of the night we'll begin posting regular updates on her progress. If this little one comes in the early hours of the morning Eastern Standard Time, many of our international friends will be the first to know!

So keep checking back for updates. Baby Bradshaw should be arriving soon!

Baby Watch: Week 38

Yeah!!  Little girl made more progress this week.  Today's doctor visit found me at 2 centimeters and almost 80% effaced.  My doctor is pretty convinced that I will not make it to my due date (which is the 20th).   This report gave me fresh faith for walking, and I dragged Mike on a walk around the block right before dinner, despite the fact that it felt like 30 below outside (Thanks, Babe, you are the bestest!).  This evening has definitely found me in the worst pain yet, and my faith for baby to come SOON is increasing!  I will keep y'all updated.

Baby Watch: Week 37

Baby girl decided to take a vacation over this last week. We didn’t lose any ground, but we certainly didn’t gain any either. Still 1 cm dilated, head down, and 60%-70% effaced. I guess my run/walk with all the nephews yesterday didn’t really do anything. I’ll have to work on some other ideas. The doctors are really pleased with everything, and though they are always commenting that she’s small (4th percentile), they say that she’s right on track and there are no concerns. The doc that I saw today said that she may even top out around 7 pounds. I, on the other hand, feel as though I’m in the 200th percentile and can’t wait to return to “normal” (whatever that feels like). The countdown continues!

Baby Watch: Week 36

Good news from today's doctor visit!  My little girl's head is way down (doc told me that they usually don't see the baby's head this low until actual labor), I'm 1 centimeter dilated, and 60%-70% effaced. She's been a busy girl over the last week.  They did a last minute sonogram which showed her still small (good girl!), weighing in somewhere around 5.5 pounds.  Doc doesn't think she'll exceed 6.5 pounds but you never know.  I realize that you can go for weeks in this state; but I certainly enjoyed this report over last week's report of "nothing happening."  The doctor told me to stay active, so I'm coooking up potential plans to keep me moving around.

Until next week...

Baby Watch: Week 35

Well, week 35 hasn’t seen much action.  Although my trip to the doctor this morning confirmed that her head was still down, it also showed that everything else was status quo.  I think she’s a happy little camper.  Lots of food, warmth, and sleep.  Why would she even want to think of leaving all that for the real world? 

I’m finally creeping up on that “ready to get the baby out” stage that I’ve heard so much about.  There is this one special muscle in my back that, no matter how much I twist and turn, has decided to stay constantly tight.  The tiredness level is increasing. This morning I fell asleep sitting up while talking to my mom; I even started dreaming.  I’m also growing out of my maternity clothes and my socks are too tight.  Fun times! 

But, you know, I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything.  Each one of these funny little inconveniences is leading up to the arrival of my little girl.  Let the aches and pains continue!   It’s all worth it.  Five more weeks to go…

Baby Watch: Week 34

Merry Christmas to me...I mean to my daughter.  This past Christmas came with a present from my parents which has become my favorite baby girl item.   

 

Aren't they adorable??  I'm thinking about buying myself an adult pair so that we can match.  Might be a fun way to leave the hospital together.

Went to the doctor today.  All is well.  I'm measuring right on track and baby is small (thank you, Lord!).  Her heartbeat is strong and her head is down.  I'll keep you posted.   

Baby Watch: Week 33

Week 33 has arrived and all is well.  At my last doctor’s appointment they told me that I was measuring a little on the small side.  This was actually a relief as my dear mother-in-law gave birth to three boys weighing in at 10, 9, and 8 pounds respectively.  The fact that my husband was the 9-pounder has always left me a little afraid that I might have a really big baby.  In my mind “big baby” has always equaled “more pain”.  While we are on the subject of pain, my time for giving birth to this girly is fast approaching.  I have had many people ask me if I’m going to “go natural”.  Hmmm…if you remember, one of my recent posts described how I have only just recently been able to have my blood taken without panicking.  I have also reached the place where I can sit in the waiting room at the doctor's office without feeling faint.  Now, I ask you, does this sound like a woman with enough bravery to “go natural”?  No, I will be heading to the hospital at the first hint of labor with a sign around my neck labeled “epidural” in large letters.  I figure this should keep anyone from being confused.  (Please, no e-mails trying to convince me otherwise.  It ain't gonna happen.)  I have nothing but the deepest respect for my mom and those of my friends who have gone through labor without anything for the pain, but I’m content to admire them from afar. 

One comforting thing my mom’s always told me is that all of the pain becomes worth it the moment that little baby is placed in your arms.  My “moment” moves closer to me with each passing day and I can’t wait!  Until next week, 7 more weeks to go…

Baby Watch--Does anyone have a lemon?

Lemons have assumed a rather prominent place in my life of late.  No, I don’t just eat them by themselves; they have to be squeezed into a glass of water with lots of ice.  The little girl living inside of me who has learned to love Cherry Coke has recently been subjected to glass after glass of ice water with lemon.  I used to drink hot tea upon waking up in the morning.  Not anymore.  The first thing I want is, you guessed it, a giant glass of lemon water!  Last weekend, I ran out of lemons.  It was horrible.  I checked my mom’s fridge.  Nope, I had already eaten all of her lemons.  I decided to see if my aunt had any.  No, she only had lemon juice and that wouldn’t cut it. It has to be the real thing.  For two long days, I didn’t have any lemons.  I tried many substitutes, but my body wouldn’t be fooled.  Enough was enough.  I finally drove to the grocery store and bought three huge lemons.   

If you are a dentist, just skip over the next paragraph, but aside from drinking the lemon water I have to chew ice (a habit most appreciated by my sister, Nicole).  Who craves ice?  I thought it was supposed to be pickles and ice cream.  Anyways, I assumed that this strange craving was a phase, but I found out otherwise.  My Doctor recently informed me that I have an iron deficiency and proceeded to put me on about 75 iron pills a day.  I was telling another pregnant friend of mine about this deficiency and she proceeded to ask me if I was chewing ice.  When I told her that ice was about all that I was consuming these days (along with lemons) she explained that she had just learned that a craving for ice has been linked to a lack of iron.  Sure enough, I looked it up online and she was right.  The website also said that some people crave other non-food items such as paper and clay.  Scary, I know. I’m hoping to stick with ice.

There has been much to laugh at and enjoy over the last seven months!  I will keep you updated as our countdown continues.  Nine more weeks to go…

Baby Watch: Week 30

While everyone else is counting down the days until Christmas, we in the “Mahaney” clan are counting down the weeks until the first female grandchild, the future of GirlTalk, is born. We thought we’d invite you to join in our anticipation. So every week, until the baby comes, Janelle will be giving an update on her road to delivery. We’ll even keep you posted on the up-to-the-hour details when she goes into labor.

So, without further ado, here’s Janelle:

Week thirty has arrived and I’m still alive.  Yes, I made it through the “hanging over the toilet” phase and moved right into the “rapid growth” phase, now to find myself right in the middle of the “slightly uncomfortable” phase. 

I think I have mastered the doctor visit “routine”—arrive a couple minutes early; take a seat in the waiting room and pretend to look at a magazine; have your name called so that the nurse can weigh you and record it on some secret chart; head to the examination room and don the doctor’s outfit of choice for patients—a large paper napkin; wait in the examination room while studying all of the sharp-looking instruments lining the counter; do some more waiting while contemplating what a little redecorating might do for the surroundings; wait still longer trying not to watch the second hand on the clock; jolting awake as the doctor flies into the room, pushes on your belly, listens to your baby’s heart beat with her special radar device, and disappears as quickly as she came; then stumble back out to the waiting room and wait for the receptionist as she eagerly books your next “visit.”  Yeah!   

I have finally overcome my fear of needles (a result of a bad experience when I was 12) and you all would be proud to see me offering my arm to the nurse without flinching and even watching as they drain half of my blood supply into little plastic tubes. 

I have learned that you shouldn’t consume candy on your way to the doctor as they (just like your mother) “know these things”.  It can be a little humbling to admit, when asked about the results of your glucose test, that you just finished a box of grape and strawberry Nerds (strawberry being mine and my girlies favorite flavor).  I felt a little like I should be back at the pediatrician’s office.

While pregnancy brings much laughter, it also causes me to marvel.  The feeling of my baby kicking my stomach, the detail found in the sonogram picture hanging on my refrigerator, the sound of another heart beating inside of me, and the joy I experience when Mike gets close to my belly to have a “talk” with his little girl—all leave me amazed. Every little ache, pain, and slight inconvenience point to a miracle.  Ten weeks will come and go in the blink of an eye and I want to savor every minute.  February 20’th is just around the corner.