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!