Mason has Arrived!

He entered the world by C-section at 11:04 am on Monday, April 16, 2012. He weighed 8lbs 11oz and was 22 inches long!  His blood type is AB + which is the 3rd rarest type in Canada and in the world generally.  Had he been AB - he would have been the rarest... and the odds of having a negative type were high as I am B- which is the second rarest type. 

From now on, we will post our family news back through our main blog - Roundabout with The Robertsons.

We are so elated to have our son with us at last!!!

Last Week Before Mason Arrives! 39 Weeks!!!

I really tried to rest this week as my body is really sore. Mark and I spent a lot of time hanging out since our alone days were numbered! On Friday afternoon, we went to Montfort for pre-surgery bloodwork and I got my hospital bracelet too.

We received some awesome presents in the mail this week too. The Jensens sent us an awesomely cute stuffed pig and cow (I remember picking up the pig together last Fall) and Mike and Susan sent Mason a Blue Bomber onesie and bibs (Mark was very jealous). My mom also shipped us a mint green sweater, booties and bonnet for Mason to wear at the hospital. We are so lucky!

Today we took a few belly pictures to mark my last day being pregnant and I spent the day getting ready for the hospital as I must check in at 8 am tomorrow.

Last Routine OBGYN Appointment

Mark and I saw Dr. Marleau today for the last time as a pregnant couple. The next time I see him, in six days, we will be having a baby! My blood pressure is still quite high but not as high as last week. I lost a half a pound of weight and baby is doing fine but he is still breech. After that, I will only see him once more at 6 weeks post op to check my c-section is healing well. I will miss him- I like Dr. Marleau alot!

Car Seat Installation Complete!

Mark and I (well mostly Mark) tackled this important task today. It can seem very complicated with all the different belts, levers and instructions but Mark figured it out! We used a teddy bear to adjust the baby's actual restraint belt and Jake as our counterweight to make sure the seat was properly leveled... :)

Mark looking perplexed at all the levers and belts!

Jake acting as our 11 pound baby...

Getting there...

Success!  Thanks husband!!!!!

38 Weeks!

Here I am!  Thank goodness he is coming out soon because I am running into everything with this tummy- I hit the warm stove, the corner of a bookcase and all sorts of other things.  I almost need safety cones around me or bumpers of some sort.  :) 

Hospital Orientation

Last night, Mark and I attended an information session/virtual tour of the Montfort Hospital Family Birth Centre (FBC).  It was very interesting and helpful.  There were about 60 couples who attended this session and I was the only one scheduled for a c-section.  I was really surprised by that.  The FBC seems really cool and modern- they have electronic ankle bracelets for the babies security, the rooms look amazing, they have a kitchenette for afterhours eating, the baby and dad can/will be with you 24/7, kids and grandparents can visit anytime between 8-8 etc. 

Next week, I will need to visit the hospital for some preliminary tests in advance of the surgery, then on the Sunday afternoon before admittance, I call to find out exactly what time to come in.

This session really helped!

Knitted Hat

Kaelyn came home from school and surprised me with this!  She made it at school over the last few months during breaks as part of a little knitting club.  I am absolutely shocked at how wonderful it has turned out.  She was very excited to present it for Mason!

I Am Finished Work

My OBGYN appointment was this am. My blood pressure was higher than it has ever been and was beyond the high end of normal. It had gone down a bit after the exam but with the way I have been feeling, it is time to stop everything and rest as much as possible. Doctor had me do another round of bloodwork too even though last week's was ok.

As far as my weight- I gained a pound and my measurements are fine. Mason's heartbeat is fine too so that is a good sign.

All this being said, I will not be working my last 6 days. I will complete my oral exam tomorrow am and that will be that.

37 Weeks Preggers Today!

The 2 week countdown is here! So far, Mason still feels breech and things are getting tight in there! My whole lower body (well my back and butt etc.) feel bruised and uncomfy. It hurts to just sit down and my hips really ache in the night. I am looking forward to the days (way down the road) when I can be a stomach sleeper again!!!

Dr appt tomorrow am, then back to work for a few days. I sorted through all Mason's clothes again last week- placing 9+ month items in a tote since I ran out of room in his dresser. I managed to get out my shower thank yous and sort all our lovely gifts too. This week's project will be to tackle the dreaded breast pump - clean it, make sure I have all the parts and read the instructions too- YIKES!

Zellers has great deals on some baby gear since they are closing- I picked up a couple of binkie straps so M's pacifier wouldn't fly onto the floor everytime he spit it out.

I have been researching C-sections and of course opinions and experiences vary. I am nervous for sure. I may be setting up shop on the main floor for a few weeks to avoid the stairs - we will see how it goes.

Breech Baby

Mark and I went for an ultrasound today since my OBGYN could not locate Mason's position last week. It went well- his profile is 8 over 8 (whatever that means), his size indicates he is about one week bigger than his gestational age and weighs about 6.5 pounds and he is doing well BUT he is definitely BREECH - head up on my right side, butt down to lower left and feet back near his noggin at lower right of my belly. I tried to analyse the info on the ultrasound measurement screen and his head size may even be at the 38 week mark- size wise... not a shock considering the size of my cranium! :)

I went to my weekly OBGYN appt right afterward and reported the news. My doc asked if I wanted to try turning him (called version) and I said a giant NO. I have heard that hurts ALOT and he may just turn back. He listed the dangers of C-section, I took them all in and he checked his BB and decided Mason could come out a week early on April 16th when Dr. Marleau could deliver him personally. Downside to today's dr appt- my blood pressure is back up and I gained 4 pounds in a week. For those of you doing the math, that means I weigh 200 pounds right now... OMG, OMG, OMG, OMG, OMG and OMFG!!! I am freaked right the heck out since I have nearly 3 more weeks of weight gain to go. I am guessing Mason will end up weighing between 8-9 pounds- god only knows where I will end up!!!

So, unless he flips on his own up to C-section day- he comes out on April 16th. They will do an ultrasound when I arrive at hospital that day to verify.

As we stand now, we are less than 3 weeks away!!!! Holy Crap!!!

My Surprise Ottawa Baby Shower!

Mark, Hiro and the rest of my Ottawa friends pulled off the ultimate surprise and threw me a shower yesterday. It was so wonderful and I had NO idea.

Started off just over a week ago when Mark mentioned that his dad had asked the kids to come by his house this Sunday as he had an announcement to make. He assured Mark it was not anything bad. I speculated all week and decided he was going to announce he was selling his house. So, we left Kae at volleyball lessons and we headed over to my F-I-L`s house. On the way, Mark wanted to stop at his bro`s house to pick up something and I did not want to go in since we were about to see everyone at his dad`s. Mark went in and sent Hiro out with a little white lie that she wanted me to see something cute that little Renee was doing so I went in.

Then... there everyone was... SURPRISE!!!!!

Hiro hosted this wonderful party and created an amazing diaper cake. Her friend Aya really helped out, as did many others who contributed games and prizes and nibbles too (I especially loved the blue deviled eggs. In attendance were: CD, Sophie, Jess, Mig, Alice, Aya, Zara, Katherine, Kaelyn, Jenny and Shayla.

We played tons of amazing games and we received so many lovely gifts including a diaper genie, clothing, toys, towels, washcloths, toilettries, a musical mat, sunshade, neck pillow and much more! I am still completely blown away by everyone`s generosity and hard work.

36 Weeks!

Here I am... hopefully just 4 weeks left- I cannot wait.

Latest OBGYN appt

I went for my 35 week check up on Tuesday and my blood pressure has gone down so it is in the higher end of normal levels now. Unfortunately I gained 3 pounds to bring me up to 196- yikes!

This appt was also internal exam day to assess Mason`s positioning and that did not go well. Doc still cannot clearly determine where he is or his size so he has requested another ultrasound to have a good look at little man`s position and growth. We will go on Tuesday and I am looking forward to seeing how he is doing!

35 Weeks Done!

This was a tough week. I have slowed down so much that my week off was a bust. I rarely accomplished more than a nice meal each day. I did not prepare anything to freeze for when little man arrives, I did not study my French- I slept, ate a little, drank ALOT (not booze!), had a hard time catching my breath and felt faint often. I am feeling a bit swollen in the hands- took off my rings to be safe. My feet are not too bad yet... time will tell.

I did receive a glorious shipment of baby clothes from Michele again this week- the box was huge and there was so much good stuff! Mason will not need anything until late Fall for sure! I am so grateful for all of it. I will need to re-sort all his clothes as I have run out of room in his dressers! (pic to follow).

I am looking forward to getting through the next 3.5 weeks and being officially done with job interviews, French training, an exam and work in general. I am ready to call it a day and get this motherhood thing going!!!

34 Weeks Pregnant

Hopefully only 6 more to go! I am feeling really out of it these days- always short of breath, getting up and sitting back down hurts, hips ache through the night as I try to sleep... all the usual crap associated with the countdown, I am told.

Nevertheless, I countdown daily and hope it doesn't get too much worse. I have a week off and I plan to do some food prep that I can freeze for after M arrives. I will be happy to get even a few done.

Entering Week 34...

I saw my OBGYN yesterday as he is on vacation next week. I have gained 1 pound (now weighing 193 lbs) and added a half centimeter to my belly in a week (I am at 32 cms from sternum to pubic bone). I am coping surprisingly well with the weight gain and hoping I can really drop back down after Mason arrives. I am by no means a light weight to begin with and so far I have gained about 10-12 lbs since the day I discovered I was preggers (it helped that I lost nearly 10 lbs in the 1st few months).

My blood pressure is up again this week and I am really feeling it. A little over a week ago, I started getting a sore right ear. It is not an ache but an irritation or tenderness - enough to stop me chewing on that side of my mouth to avoid any discomfort. I mentioned it to the doc who screened my urine for infection and found nothing but they sent it off for a double check anyway. I started feeling slight irritation in my left ear today so I am visiting family doc tomorrow to double check it. My OBGYN said to make sure I DO NOT get antibiotics but I could use a check into it. The internet says the soreness could be one of 3 things- an ear infection, a strained jaw or something with my teeth. As far as I can tell, nothing in my mouth hurts and I have not been clenching my jaw so I am sort of hoping they find something treatable with my ears.

Having said all of this, I am completely wiped out and feel crappy. I took the rest of today off and tomorrow too. I am hoping I can continue on for the next 5 weeks but I may have to cut back to 4 days a week just to keep going.

We are in the home stretch now... I can do it!!!

33 Weeks!

I know I look really large but I am actually small for my time remaining. I met 2 ladies at a dinner party on Friday night- one had 11 weeks left and the other had 13 and I was the smallest for sure! That makes me feel better. Some stranger in a public washroom was also shocked at how small I was when I mentioned my due date. I am still refusing to put on maternity tops- choosing to wear my normal ones which does make me look like I am popping out of my clothes but oh well!

32 Weeks and 2 Days

We are moving along now... Mark and I visited the OBGYN this am. I did not gain any weight over the last two weeks (I am happy!!) but it is OK so long as my belly grew, and it did, by 1.5 cms to 31.5 from top to bottom. I suppose that I will not get this lucky again during the pregnancy so for today I will feel glad I did not balloon out in the last two weeks. Mason's heart rate was at his normal of 153 and there was no mention of my blood pressure so we are all good!!!

A woman at the restaurant where we had breakie afterward mentioned I was small for being 8 weeks away from my due date so that makes me feel a little better. I know getting really big at the end is inevitable and we just want a healthy baby boy but I would feel so grateful if I could stay within a reasonable, less Pilsbury Doughboy size and Mason could be average weight so we have him really "baby size" for longer!

I will see the doc again next Monday then back to two weeks from then- then we will be in the home stretch and I will go weekly starting at 35 weeks! I am getting excited!

Here's this week's pics- please note that the top is NOT a maternity top at all and one I have worn for several years... I hate maternity tops!!! These are my very favourite maternity pants, handed over from Jess and I am so glad. If I could, I would wear them everyday!

Nursery is complete!

Today I finished the last of the nursery prep. I emptied diapers into the little diaper holder, put away odds and ends and finally hung little boy's name above his crib. I ordered this online and it is simple but cute. I had originally wanted an inspirational saying above his crib but maybe when he gets older and we move, I can put one in his big boy room.

I picked up the shelves at JYSK a few weeks ago and stained them to match the crib and Mark hung them a couple weeks ago. We are ready and only 8-9 weeks to go!

31 Weeks

Though I look HUGE and feel enormous, I am still wearing regular tops and sweaters. I just hate how I look in maternity tops- they just accent your size!

I am struggling now with the pelvic bruise feeling that started last week and according to the net and my doc, it is normal and will only get worse as the weeks go on. Walking hurts, especially later in the day once I get home and relax for a bit. I am best first thing in the morning then I just go downhill from there.

As far as being ready for Mason, we definitely are when it comes to supplies and his room. Am I ready to go through the birth- not sure but willing to suffer through just about anything to get back to my normal self again some day. Did I mention that I HATE being pregnant??? I will admit I will miss little man's movements in my belly because that is cool but otherwise, nothing about being this way appeals to me.

Speaking of baby's movements- he is active these days. He must be starting to feel a little squished in there but he still has oodles of room to kick me like crazy!