alright. weekly dr appt update:

still dilated to 3 but found out today that i am also 50% effaced. that freaked me out a bit, seeing as they hadn't told me that before!! but apparently i've been like that since i went into labor. so i seriously am halfway there!!! i asked if he thought i would go early and he said, "your guess is as good as mine. what do you think?" i, of course, said no. he says, "well, i don't think you will either!" hmmmmm....so when will she make her big debut!??! i wish i knew! i'll be 30 weeks on saturday...my new goal is Thanksgiving Day, if i pass up 32 weeks.

i've had a LOT of contractions today and i've had a lot of uncomfortable-ness along with them. not pain, really. i actually thought it was pressure in my lower abdomen, but apparently it's not. (so my next question is what does real pressure feel like then!?)

on the weight thing, i haven't gained or lost. i'm still what i was last week, which means i've net gained 8 lbs to this point. i was worried about it, but my dr assured me that as long as abigail is growing - which she is - my weight is fine. WHEW!!! less to lose later on!!!!!

alrighty, that's it for the dr! i went to erin's after my appt and since i can't drive, she brought me home. it was nice spending a good chunk of the day with her and the kids. amber and ava completely crack me up and andrew is good at breaking all my baby gear in! he was the first in my car seat and today he took a nap in my crib. i should have got a picture of it, but alas, i did not. shame on me.

abigail has taken to liking to camp out in my right ribs. and can i just tell you that IT HURTS!??!?! it's like she pushing my ribs with everything she's got! and i can't get her to move! not comfortable in the slightest!!!

wendy and roni are coming over tonight which i am COMPLETELY stoked about! i miss them both and am excited to see them! i can't wait to see wendy's preggo self!!!

alrighty, have a fabulous rest of haloween!!!!!

did my annual pumpkin carve tonight. here's the results:

Well, ladies and gentlemen, we've hit 29 weeks! Which is FABULOUS! Not only is Abby better off in than out, but that also means I'm that much closer to having this child! It's really a catch-22!!

I decided that I have had enough of bedrest so Mom and I went to Wired & Fired to paint some pottery for Abigail. It's a compromise, really: I get to be out of the house for a bit, but you have to sit down to do the painting. So Mom thought it'd be okay....here's our finished products!!!! (my pig really is painted pink, although it's VERY light pink so you won't be able to tell well until it's fired.)

i am LOVING outback's curbside service right now!!!

in other news:

thought this would be a good haloween costume for me this year....

had a great dr appt today!! i'm still holding steady at 3 cm, even though i've had about a bazillion contractions since friday! so i'm really happy about that! abigail sounds and looks great! again, happy about that! my dr did up my meds to every 4 hours instead of every 6, which is kinda upsetting, but hey, what are ya gonna do!?

i lost 2 lbs again...not sure how that's happening but it's the 2nd time i've lost 2 lbs between appts in a row. now my net weight gain is 8 lbs. not fabulous, but my drs aren't too worried yet. if i lose again at my appt next wednesday, then they may start worrying. the thing is, all i eat is junk food! how am i not gaining anything?! wierd...

after my dr appt i went to lunch with robert, bernie, laura, nick, roberta, and marty. it was SOOOOOOOOOOO nice to be out in public, feeling like a part of society again! but now i'm back in my "solitary confinement" (as some people call it) until next wednesday!

laura came over last night a cut my hair --- which felt SOOO nice! i owe her big time!!! maybe i'll put a pic up later...or you can check the video site if you're really that interested.

YAY for a good day! now it's off to sleep, since i got none last night!

28 weeks today!!!! if i can get through 2 more weeks, we're good to go!!!!

Erin brought the kids over tonight and Amber & Ava painted my belly. It was pretty funny. Here's the video:



Erin, being the awesome Suzy-Q Homemaker that she is, also made a FANTASTIC pumpkin pie from scratch...from a real pumpkin! NOT a can! It was great!! Here are other pictures of our night together:

One thing I’d grab if my house were on fire: pictures, definitely
One thing I wish I could throw away: some past memories
One thing I’ll never, ever throw away: pictures of Abigail's ultrasounds
Something I lost and still miss: my first baby
Something I’ve kept since childhood: a few dr seuss books
A food item I never run out of: ginger ale
A household brand I’m very loyal to: suave
Something I sleep with every night: 2 pillows (and my husband!)
One thing that’s on my wish list: to get off of bedrest
Something I take with me wherever I go: phenergan and/or pepto bismol
Something that makes me smile when I see it: my baby's picture
Something my children fight over: don't have to deal with that yet
Something I hate to clean: anything that needs to be cleaned, really
Something I show off when people visit: Abigail's pictures
Something I hide when people visit: my laundry
Something I’m embarrassed to admit I like: can't think of anything embarrassing...
Something I collect: dr seuss books
Something I avoid at all costs: throwing up
Something that reminds me of my mother: books
Something that reminds me of my father: not going there
The best gift I’ve ever received: the love of my husband

everyone needs to listen to this (CLICK HERE)....it is FREAKIN' HILARIOUS!!! it's a clip from a morning radio show somewhere....trust me, it's funny!

so i just got home from the doctor. it was a good visit. no change: still holding steady at 3 cm. which is better than being dialated more!! she did "modify" my bedrest a bit: i am now allowed to go fix stuff for myself in the kitchen a little, which is always nice! and i can walk around the house a little more than before, but i still pretty much have to stay mostly down.

mom let me go to THQ for lunch today, which was AWESOME! i ate with the guys that are recording Sing Praise. it KILLS me to not be doing it....but there ya go. it was really nice to be with other people, even if just for a short amount of time.

when i got home, my fetal doppler was waiting for me on my doorstep!!!!!! i am so freakin' excited about it!!! i've been playing with it for about an hour now! i'm trying to get a good recording on my computer. that way, maybe i can figure out how to put a sound file on this blog then everyone can hear my baby's heartbeat!! (for those of you who don't care, sorry. this is my life right now! you'll just have to get over it!)

anyway, there it is! (have any of you seen AMADEUS? the movie about mozart? the king guy said "there it is" all the time in that movie....i've kinda taken to saying it now...wierd...)

it's sunday and i wish i were at church. not being able to go KILLS me! but it's all for my baby, right?! (kinda ironic if you think about it....who would have ever thought you'd say "i can't go to church for my child?")

anyway, so far things are okay. the medicine i have to take every 6 hours makes my heart race and makes me shake pretty bad...especially when i eat. but i guess after having zero exercise, any kind of work my body does will make my heart work overtime. so that's great fun!

abigail has been moving quite a bit, which makes me happy. the only real breakdown i've had since i've been home was on friday night when i hadn't felt her in a really long time. i finally felt her and i just lost it completely. i think it's just nerves, really.

i'm really excited about getting my fetal doppler in the next few days! mom rented me one from storkradio.com so we can check in on her whenever we need to. it's the same doppler that my doctor's office uses, so i am really excited about that! once i get it in the mail, i'll try to put her heartbeat up on here for all y'all to hear! :-)

other than that, things are okay. i'm not going stir crazy...yet!! i'm looking forward to my "outing" tomorrow when i get to go to the doctor!!! that'll be a couple hours of "freedom" for me! and hopefully there will be no cervical changes to speak of!!!

until then, here's to laying on my back for 24 hours straight!!!

alright! so here's the story:

tuesday night i started bleeding out of nowhere while at dinner. i called the nurse line and she said it was probably nothing to worry about but if i was still anxious in the morning, to come on in. of course i was anxious so i called. i went to the dr's office and sat for over 2 hours while they tried to fit me in. once i finally got checked by the dr, i was told i was 3 cm dialated and needed to be rushed to labor & delivery. (commence jill's freak out here.) i was taken over to L&D and hooked up to 2 monitors and an iv - just in case abigial decided to make her appearance. i was also started on steroids to help her lungs mature rather quickly.

up to this point, i had not been having contractions. this was a positive sign. until 1:15 this morning when i went into labor, having contractions every 3 minutes. it was here i was given 2 shots of some medication i can never remember the name of to stop the contractions. when the dr came to check me this morning, i was still 3 cm, which was good. i hadn't progressed any further dialation even with being thrown into labor. the dr said that if by my 2nd steroid shot at 1pm i still hadn't dialated more, they would send me home on complete bedrest. so when i got my 2nd shot of the steriods for abby's lungs, the dr checked me again and i was only 2 cm!! not sure how that happened, but i'll take it!!!

now i am home and on complete bedrest until abigail is born. this could be anytime now, but we are hoping for at least 30 wks gestation. i'll be 27 wks on saturday, so it's not that far. when i was admitted to L&D i was given an ultrasound to check abby and she weighed in at 2lbs5oz which is really good. even if i deliver her now, she will be fine. she'll have to stay in the NICU for a while but she will make it, barring any unforseen circumstances.

thank you to all who have prayed for me over the past couple days. i have gotten so many calls and emails letting me and robert know of your thoughts and prayers. they are working! my dialation is going backwards and my labor stopped!! that's amazing! so thank you!!!

now i just have to come up with what i am going to do for the next few weeks/months while i am at home alone. i'm not allowed to do anything but be in bed, go to the bathroom, and shower. nothing else. any ideas are VERY welcome!!!!!!!!

it's 2:56am and i'm awake.

this is a much too common occurance now-a-days.

AHHHH!!!!!!!!!!

i got new fish yesterday. i didn't know that angel fish could be in a freshwater tank, but lo and behold, i got 'em!! i also got another betta as my other one didn't last the move from one room to the other. it's amazing how fickle they are!

in other news, i got a full-time temporary job at the corps today! the receptionist who was there quit and they asked if i would come fill in until abigail is born. i can honestly say that i never thought i'd be excited to be a receptionist, but i am just so bored and tired of being alone all day! this will be good. so wednesday (after recordings for sing praise are over) i will be the new corps receptionist. WOO HOOO! (yes this meant i had to call the 2 families i was working extremely part time for, but this, i feel, is more important and better for me at this point in time!)

here's to god looking out for us!!!!!

i'm gorging myself at the moment...seriously, i cant get enough!

tonight, in accordance with my "celebrate birthdays/anniversaries over a whole month (or at least a week) tradition", robert and i went to Roy's for dinner. it was this really nice "hawaiian fusion cuisine" that was REALLY good! we told them that it was our anniversary so they brought my dessert (creme brulee) out like this! robert had a molten chocolate lava cake thing that looked really good, but since abigail has pretty much made it impossible for me to eat chocolate, i had to settle for just smelling it! and it smelled GOOD!

anyway, our anniversary week/month celebrations are now over and it's back to normal life.

that's how i like it!

we went to the Atlanta Opera last night as our anniversary present to ourselves. it was PHENOMENAL!! we saw Turandot, which is the opera with "Nessun Dorma" in it. i've been to several musicals at the Fox before, but this was my first real opera. it was absolutely amazing! we had the best time!! i love getting all dressed up for a good night out every once in a while. and what made this time even more special was that i found a dress that didn't make me look like a cow! you would never know my dress wasn't a maternity dress! (but i won't tell you what size it was....!!!)

anyway, if you ever get the chance to go to the opera, GO!

so today my stroller and pack-n-play came in the mail!! of course that means i have to set them up and play with them! the pack-n-play has a detachable bassinet in it and also has a changing table. the stroller folds up so small (which is one of the main reasons i picked that one) and my car seat fits into it!

i'm so excited!! the time is getting closer and closer!!

check out www.wheresgeorge.com and find out where your money has been! it's kinda cool if you get bored....