As promised, here are some photos from my recent baby shower. Enjoy...I sure did!!

Me and my old college roommate Jen...can you believe I used to borrow clothes from this girl?!?


Me wearing my "Mom To Be" sash...I felt like a bloated, uncomfortable beauty queen with a backache and a bladder control problem!!

A sign for my Babin!!

Cutting my cake...the last cake I will get to have for six months or so while I lose the baby weight!

I should hold a caption contest on this one...my entry would be "Dear God, if you're listening, PLEASE end my suffering and put me into labor right now!!"

Baby Shower Photos

PRESENTS!!!!

Opening Jen's present -- the entire thing was giraffe themed, and this stuffed animal was TOO CUTE!!


My sister couldn't help herself...the desire to shop for the baby got the best of her!! She even bought me this adorable polar bear stuffed animal...I explained to her that polar bears are not often seen while on safari (the theme of the baby's nursery), but she had to buy it anyway! It's really sweet and soft, and our baby doesn't discriminate...animals of any kind are welcome on his/her safari!!


Melissa bought me the cutest little baby robe...I can't wait to post a picture of him or her all wrapped up in it after a bath!

More presents from Melissa...he or she is definitely going to be a little baby Gator!

37 Week Doctor's Appointment

Well, what do you know...I was right all along (as usual)! I had my 37 week doctor's appointment this morning (I'm going once a week now), and due to the fact that I'm measuring rather large for my gestational age (like four weeks ahead), they ordered an ultrasound to measure the weight of the baby (to make sure he or she is not a GIANT).

Now, to give you a basis for comparison, the average baby weighs nearly 6 pounds at 37 weeks gestation. Mine, on the other hand, is already a little more than 8 POUNDS! Holy moly...he or she is measuring in the 93% of babies in terms of size/weight!! When they told me that, my first question (other than "Can I get the epidural now?!") was "So from here on out, how much more weight will he or she gain?" They said the average is about half a pound a week, which would put the baby at about 9.5 pounds at 40 weeks...thank goodness I'm planning on being induced a week early!! I guess I shouldn't be that surprised...David was a plump baby, and I was no slouch myself (over 9 pounds). Looks like we'll have the fat little baby we were hoping for...you should've seen this little one's cheeks on the ultrasound screen (he/she looked like a little chipmunk).

In other news, the doctor says that the head is down (which we already knew), and I am 75% effaced and 1 cm dilated...so things are progressing! I probably won't efface much more before I go into active labor, but hopefully I'll dilate another centimeter or so before my next appointment (Thursday, Aug. 28) so that I'm presenting all the conditions necessary to formally schedule an early induction. The doctor thinks this is very likely, but keep your fingers crossed for me just in case! The scheduled induction date would be Tuesday, Sept. 2...which gives me just 13 more days! I try not to think too much about that, because if I do I start going into super-planner mode, stressing out about all the things I still need to do before the birth (get the car seat installed, pack my hospital bag, create a "birth plan," finish my master's degree, travel the world...you know, the basics). I figure...it'll all get done, and everything will be just fine (at least, that's the lie I'm telling myself right now...all you parents who have been through this before, just leave me to my delusion!).

Well, that's about all for now...I'll post the baby shower photos as soon as I get them, and will update you after my appointment next week. Thanks to everyone for their concern about Tropical Storm Fay...so far, we're doing just fine. Just say a prayer that I don't go into labor during the worst part of the storm (sometime in the next two days)! Love you all...

Baby Shower!!!

I wanted to write a quick post to thank everyone who came to my baby shower on Sunday, August 17th...everyone was so generous and I had an awesome time! I got tons of stuff I really needed (diapers, onesies, blankets, my baby bedding!) and some really fun stuff too (books, bath toys, stuffed animals, and even a camo patterned onesie/hat/bib set!).

I really want to thank everyone who helped make such a special day possible for me, especially my mom and sister, who went out of their way to plan everything -- sending out invitations, getting the menu put together, ordering the cake, ordering special signs online (like the one in the photo above), the list goes on and on and on. It really meant a lot to me...and to "tiny"/"babin" (the silly nicknames we call the baby)!

I have more photos, but they're on someone else's camera, so as soon as I get them I promise to post them. Thanks again to everyone...love you all!!

A Clean Bill of Health!

Great news...I went to the doctor this morning and, after two days of bedrest and much worrying, was given a clean bill of health! All my tests came back completely normal, and my blood pressure (which reached nearly 170/110 on Wednesday) has stabilized and come back down. So no more bedrest for me...I even got to go back to work this afternoon!! Basically my doctor said that they are just going to watch me and be a little more vigilant, and that I should try to take it a little easier than I have been and try not to get too stressed out (about, oh I don't know, things like the fact that I have a new job, or that we're building a house, or that my husband doesn't even live here!!). Those of you who know me well know that won't be easy for me, but I promised them I'd try.

My next appointment is on Monday, August 11th, and that's when they'll start checking me to see if I'm making any progress toward labor. Keep your fingers crossed that I at least present the conditions necessary to schedule an induction around 39 weeks, which would make the baby due on Sept. 2nd. An induction would be so much better for us, since it would allow us to plan in advance so that there's less of a chance that David will miss the birth (which is a pretty huge possibility if we wait until I go into labor naturally!).

Thanks to everyone who was thinking about me and praying for me. I love you all and promise I'll keep you posted!

Caitlin

PS -- On the bad news side, I finally got a stretch mark on my stomach. Cocoa butter sucks and is a major lie. It is a sad, sad day. Feel free to mourn as you see fit.