Here she comes!

Although I am sure there will be plenty more 2am entries to this blog, this will be the last one where I'm not up because of a baby! We are being scheduled for an induction today (Friday) and I thought I would do one last blog before our worlds change forever!
During a routine check-up on Thursday the midwife thought the baby was a tad small for how far along I was so she had me go in for an ultrasound just to make sure everything was going well. It could have been because the baby was so far down, but she wanted to make 100% sure. The ultrasound did show that the baby was smaller than she should be along with a few other "findings" that rose some flags. (At this point in pregnancy Katelynn was almost 7 lbs, this baby is at or around 5lbs.) So after discussing it the midwife and another dr suggested that the baby be induced so that she could be properly monitored, observed and fed. It's only 8 days before her official due date so we're not worried about it being "too early." When I asked about waiting to see if she did gain some weight over the next week or so, they said that they're not sure why she's not gaining the weight and can't say that more time would help. If she's not growing properly because the placenta isn't doing its job, then giving her more time will actually do more harm than good. Granted, if everything is normal another week (or two!) may do the trick, but it's a gamble with so many unknowns and most medical professionals aren't gamblers! (neither are we!) So they want her out so they can make 110% sure she's okay, since they can't be sure of that through the ultrasounds.
So Katelynn went to Nana and Papa's last night so that Kevin and I could get ourselves ready and not have to worry about what to do with her in the morning. They had planned on taking her all weekend anyway, so this will work out great, not knowing how long we'd need her taken care of, we at least have the next 3 days covered!
Needless to say, we're excited, a bit nervous but ready to meet our little one. Although this wasn't how I had hoped this labor/delivery would go, (didn't handle the news too well at first, but am okay with it now) I know God's ultimately in control of every last little detail and it could turn out to be a blessing in disguise! I look forward to posting our first photos of the baby and our new family unit! We even took photos with Katelynn before she left - the last ones as a family of three! Well, four really, Libby was in the photo too and she technically was the first "baby".
So we ask for and appreciate your prayers over the next day or two - for the labor and delivery part for sure, but also for our little baby - we're praying that when she comes out that all the ultrasound findings would miraculously be gone, that she'd gain weight rapidly, and there would be no complications to speak of. We're praying for peace and trust in God's promises as the next day or two unfold and that we not get caught up in the fear of the unknown - as there's plenty there. God created this baby from the start and it would be silly to assume He didn't know what He was doing!

In anticipation....

I borrowed this from another mommy-to-be's blog and thought it so fitting to post on our own. (Thanks for posting it Brooke!)

These Last Few Hours
written by: Dede McCall

It is important to me that I spend a part of the next few hours
here alone with you in the darkness.

You and I will never be this close again.
By morning you will be a tiny person, all on your own.
No longer the kicking, demanding, bulge in my body
that I have grown to love so well.

I pray God will safely guide you on your journey
and I ask Him for the strength to help you all I can.

Again you signal your impatience to be free.

Time to wake your Daddy.

Olympic Style False Start!

I always felt bad for the athletes in a competition where there was a false start, they'd get distracted and have to start over - but then realized it may help them! They got to make sure they were really ready, refocus and do better next time. We got just that opportunity yesterday!

I had been having Braxton Hicks all weekend but it was just constant discomfort, nothing that came and went, or got progressively worse. Then Monday morning I was woken up at 2:30am with a major contraction and waves of them coming every couple of minutes, but not getting any stronger. So after about 45 minutes, I realized that this could be it and started running through my mind all the things that weren't ready yet! Where's the back-up doula's phone number? (ours is on vacation!) Katelynn doesn't have a bag packed, the camera batteries aren't all charged, the dishes aren't done, the baby carseat isn't in the car yet! So I got up and puttered around for about an hour trying to get stuff done and physically feeling fine so I decided to go back to bed. If it was the real thing, I was going to need as much rest as I could get! The moment I laid down they came right back, just as fast as they had started! But this time there was more of a break in between, so much so that I fell asleep between one of them and woke up 2 hours later! I was sure we'd be having dinner in the hospital, but nope! I may have had a handful more contractions over the course of the whole day, it was definitely a false start!

Needless to say, we used our Monday false start to "really" get ready! (Kevin has Monday's off so it worked out great!) And after seeing how quickly those contractions came (and unfortunately went!) we know that we're not going to have a whole lot of time to stay home and wait it out. So the dishes are done and the kitchen is beautiful (thanks Kevin!), Katelynn's bag is packed, the back-up doula knows our situation, the camera batteries are charged and packed, and we will be heading to the carseat inspection day this morning! We even watched two movies and got some grocery shopping done! Talk about a productive day and a much appreciated false start! Now if this baby could just decide if she wants out or not!!

One other sign I think we're getting close :) I'm craving all kinds of foods! Yesterday morning I wanted a McGriddle sandwich for breakfast (since I thought we'd be eating on the way to the hospital!), then for dinner I wanted fried chicken and chocolate ice cream! And that's just what we had - and it was great! (yes me, the non-chocolate eater!) I figured I'll be burning all those calories during labor anyway, right!?

So, are we ready? Probably not, but we're as ready as we're gonna be!!! Are we excited, you bet! As we were eating dinner last night I commented on how 12 hours ago this sure wasn't where I thought we'd be eating dinner! So who knows what today may hold... :) or tomorrow, or the next day, or the next.....

The Pregnant Pause

I had always assumed the term "Pregnant Pause" came from the fact that the "pause" in question was just a bit larger and a tad more awkward than it needed to be....kinda like us full term mommies :)
No, I now realize it comes from the pause that most moms enter once they hit full term at 37 weeks and still have up to 4 weeks of the waiting game to play! (for those not familiar with pregnancy time lines, "full term" is 37 weeks, which is where they get "9 months of pregnancy" but the due date actually marks 40 weeks of pregnancy - yes that makes 10 Months, not 9! And most practitioners will induce after 41 weeks, which gives the baby a 4 week window in which to make their appearance.)
Sunday marked 37 weeks for baby and I and she could come tonight or she could decide to extend her reservation and stay another 4 weeks! So in the mean time we wait. Life gets all but put on pause and we wait. There's only so much nesting, rearranging, etc that you can do and so we wait. Because we didn't know if this little one would be coming earlier or later, I cleared my calendar for the next three weeks, just to play it safe....now I'm bored! But I know better than making plans and getting too busy and over doing it, I already can't sleep (which is why this blog gets updated at 3am!) and I'd really rather not get too worn out before the baby gets here! So, we take it easy and wait.....I know, I know, life will get busier than I had bargained for in just a few weeks, and I'll be wishing for this boredom back, yada yada! That's easy to say when you're not the one held in the midst of a pregnant pause. :) I wonder if it's any worse for the 2nd baby because everything is "done" and there's less 1st time anxieties to pass the time fretting over!? Or is it worse the 2nd time around because I have a 2 and a half year old that realized she wasn't experiencing her "terrible two's" to the fullest and decided to make up for lost time! :)
I keep getting asked: "Are you ready?" Of course not, that's why I want the baby to get here! We learned last time that you're never really "ready" to have a baby, so I'm as ready as I'm gonna be! So, "Baby Balcom, Come on Down!"
For all my other pregnant mommy friends out there, I hope you're keeping busy (but not too busy!) during your pregnant pause and enjoying the quiet at 3am if you can't sleep either! 3am will look a whole lot different in just a little bit. :) And let's hope these pauses don't last longer than they need to! I think9 months is long enough and 10 is more than plenty! :)

New Family Photos

Talk about a blessing! Our friend Shelly used us as "practice subjects" to photograph and play around with some maternity shots and look at these photos! Obviously I can't post them all, but I played around with a few in Memory Manager (an extremely easy to use software program by Creative Memories, plug, plug!) and wanted to share them with you. I may have to start doing an online photo album instead of posting them all here since I'm sure over the next few weeks we'll have PLENTY of photos to share!! :) (you should be able to click on them to get a bigger view)
THANK YOU SHELLY!!!!

Katelynn Rides her Trike!

Katelynn got this tricycle for Christmas and hasn't gotten more than one full rotation of the pedals...until today! It started with just one or two rotations and then she started to get the hang of it. I made sure she had plenty of room and she just took off! Here's a few videos of her new found skill! Maybe we'll try the driveway next! :)

Baby Balcom's Shower

I was so blessed by everyone that came to the baby shower to welcome and bless our new baby! Thank you to everyone who attended and to my mom and sister-in-law for making it all happen! Here's some fun photos from the day. (unfortunately my batteries weren't strong enough to last the whole event so we didn't get a whole lot of photos - but we did get some!)





Elise smelling a candy filled diaper to guess the candy bar...not a sight you see everyday! :)

Katelynn even got gifts at the baby shower! Here she is excited about her new wind-up mouse!

The night before the shower my sister-in-law took my mom and I out to manicures and pedicures and then my mom took us all to dinner. What a nice mommy treat! Especially considering that reaching my toes is getting more difficult by the day! I felt so pampered by their generosity - thank you both!!

An afternoon with Heather and Abrielle

On Sunday we got to pay a visit to my college friend Heather up in Seattle and meet her new little bundle of joy! I hadn't seen Heather since she got married 4 years ago so it was great to see her and of course meet the baby! Katelynn was interested, but not all too impressed with the little one - especially when she started crying! She did bring her a few toys to play with and offered her a book she was reading. She still talks about the "tiny baby" that we saw at the house with the dragonfly she almost caught and the cat she pet! (She and Kevin went outside to pick raspberries in their back yard and there was a dragonfly and a cat...I hear about that at least once a day!)

This is probably one of the first times recently where Katelynn has actually smiled for a photo without "posing"- isn't she cute!!